New start
by Hinata1313
Summary: Kakashi saved her life, allowing her to have a second chance. Would he take his opportunity too? Will he be able to come to terms with himself and his past? Kakashi/OC Please read and review!
1. Chapter 1

What can I say? The mistakes I made _hurt_, so I had to rewrite and y-in-flame was nice enough to work as my beta again. Thank you! Only minor changes, the plot remains the same. Hope you enjoy it noless.

* * *

Today was her big day; she had been waiting for so long now. She looked at her reflection on the relatively smooth surface of the water. She let her yellow eyes roam over her face; she saw the dark bags under her eyes, her cheeks were haggard and her messy blue hair gave her more than just a worn look. Today she would leave Kirigakure... how she **hated** it to be here. The rules the Mizukage set up were horrifying.  
She put all the things she had into an old backpack, and those weren't many. She only owned a picture of her parents, a few coins, the clothes she wore and a necklace she got from _**him**_. The one who should've saved her, but wasn't able to safe himself in the end.  
_'Only one last time. You need to know… they won't catch you today,'_ she told herself, at least that's what she wished.

Silent as a shadow she crept out of her hideout and silently walked towards the cave her targets were sitting in. She hid in the shadows and listened carefully.

"You have the scroll?" she heard one ask.

"Yeah," someone else answered. "Just as I expected, he gave us the orders."

"To assassinate her?" another one asked.

"No, to ask her out, Idiot." She could hear a hard punch. "Of course we should kill her, bonehead! What else?"

"Nothing," grumbled the punched one.

"Minds on the plan! There's only one person that could cause trouble right now."

They were called to order and she strained her ears to hear more.

"That damned Hatake, right?"

"Right. But he's not the only one I wanted to kill. Konoha's leader of the interrogation squad, Ibiki Morino, he tortured me once, and I want my revenge." She could hear him grumble.

"You'll get your chance." She heard a fourth voice, a cold and dangerous one.

"But first kill that Hatake. A reliable source of mine told me that he's coming to us. Seems fate is playing into our hands today. I think he should reach his destination in about one hour. You go there, and then you can have your fun. But don't kill each other when you fight about the bounty." He laughed coldly.

Her eyes widened. Someone found out! She had to leave immediately and catch him before he could reach their meeting-point. She had all the information she needed, and was about to leave as she caught another sentence of the fourth speaker.

"I don't think I have to mention that the traitor who is supposed to be there as well has to be eliminated immediately."

She gulped. Someone had blown her cover! She sped off as fast as possible, running into the forest and the mist.

Kakashi kept moving; he was already on the main island and getting tired. He just had returned from a longer mission and Tsunade had sent him right away again. His order was to meet one of Jiraiya's spies not far away from the Village Hidden in the Mist. He had masked down his chakra, and carefully walked down the path to the designated meeting-point. Inwardly he cursed Tsunade that she sent _**him **_there, but she had insisted. Within this country the Sharingan was nearly useless, a fact that rubbed him the wrong way. Two days ago he had taken the last Hyōrōgan he had in his pack and to him it felt as if the effect already started to wear off.

"How will I recognize the informant?" he had asked the Fifth.

"As far as I know, blue hair, yellow eyes and a necklace with a silver moon. You'll know when you see her."

_'A girl?'_ he wanted to ask, but he knew better and kept silent. That was typical Jiraiya. No way the old perverted hermit would have male spies.

He cursed inwardly again and then he stopped dead. He heard something - someone - and this someone was running pretty fast in his direction. Without pausing he jumped into the next tree and waited. But it didn't take long and the source for the noises came into his visual field: a blue haired person came running towards the tree. He could hear her heavy breathing and literally smell her panic. Shortly after he heard the reason why she was running; there was somebody following her.  
The woman stumbled and fell over. She cursed and stood up again.

_'Since when am I this stupid? I should've known that there would be a guard around… and then I run right into him… I'm such a moron,'_ she cursed herself.

She nearly fell again, her vision became blurry.

"Not that way..." she cursed, leaning against a tree. "They'll catch me."  
And she stumbled away again, since she could hear them now.

"Find her and kill her! She must be the traitor!" one of the pursuers shouted, and the other ones laughed.

"Would be a pleasure."

Kakashi frowned. So _**this **_blue haired woman who stumbled through the forest was Jiraiya's spy?  
_'Normally he preferred blond women,'_ Kakashi thought while jumping off his branch. He ran up behind her, grabbed her and continued running.

"What the…! Leave me…!"

"I'd better shut up if I were you. Your hunters are hot on our heels."

As she saw the headband and the leaf-symbol she fell quiet immediately. The silver hair, the covered eye... he _**had **_to be Hatake Kakashi.

Kakashi managed to bring some safe distance between them and the pursuers, but he knew they wouldn't reach the shore without being detected, let alone disappear into the sea without being tracked. When he felt it safe enough again he sat her down and listened to the surrounding forest.

"Are you able to fight?" he asked and she managed a faint nod.

Shortly after, their pursuers skidded to a halt at the end of the tree line and glared at them.  
Inwardly he hoped that she wouldn't turn on him; fighting against six would be too straining right now. Judging from the chakra levels they all showed he should be able to deal with them, but he had to economize with his chakra pool. The woman stumbled one step backwards and touched her wounded shoulder to see if she was still bleeding before she looked at her fellow countrymen calculatingly. She aided Kakashi as well as she could and took down two of the five Shinobi before she sunk down on her knees and fought to remain conscious. Kakashi managed to kill two, but the third was able to get away. He dragged the woman back to her feet and helped her to get into the small boat he had hidden. Out on the sea there was a sailing ship waiting for him.

The way there was silent; she drifted in and out of consciousness. Kakashi watched her from the distance; he remained in the bow while they sailed back to Fire Country. She looked sick; her skin color was yellow and her body too bony for a woman her age. He didn't allow himself to sleep, just to make sure that she didn't pull off any tricks.  
As they reached the shore he had to carry her, since she didn't wake up again. The first break he allowed himself and placed her down he heard a quiet 'poof' next to him and he looked down on her again.  
Her appearance had changed completely.

_'A henge,'_ he thought. _'Why didn't I notice?'_

He sighed and summoned his pack.

"Go look if you can find any of our colleagues. I'm too exhausted to keep this up much longer."  
The dogs spread out and he lifted her up again to continue his way home.  
Shortly after – and utterly to his surprise – Pakkun appeared in front of him.

"I found Gai," the pug said and turned around just as Team Gai landed only a few steps away.

"Ah, my eternal rival! What's up that you need my youthful help?"

Kakashi said nothing, only tilted his head and shortly looked at the woman who hung limply at his side.

"I think we should take her with us," Tenten said after a short examination. "She needs help. We can remove the weapons for our safety, but I think we don't need to. She looks too ill to move."

Neji nodded.

"She's no danger to us," he said, after a short look at her with his Byakugan. "She's out of chakra."

"Well, then let's go. I'll carry her," Gai said and took her from Kakashi.

"She nearly has no weight. And that was too much for you?" Gai asked but Kakashi only glared at him.

Tenten sympathetically smiled at him and then shrugged, before she nodded towards the road again. Lee tried to talk her into letting him carry her, but she vehemently refused. Neji simply sighed and shook his head.

"You're looking rather worn out yourself," the Hyūga said quietly as he walked next to Kakashi.

"No time to recover, Tsunade just sent me out again immediately," Kakashi muttered back and Neji nodded knowingly.

As they reached the village Gai and Kakashi headed for the hospital, and as soon as they entered a nurse hurried towards them. Shortly after the unconscious Kunoichi lay on a bed and was brought into the next free surgery.

"Where's the Hokage?" Kakashi asked the nurse.

"In her office. Should I call her?"

"No need to, I'll go see her myself," he said and left, while Gai remained behind to keep watch.

"Back already?" she asked him as soon as he had entered her office.

"Yes. But it was a henge; I guess you should know that. She _**is **_wearing the necklace _**and **_she was followed."

"Jiraiya's notes mentioned that she needed to hide. Perhaps a Kekkei Genkai? At least a henge would allow her to move freely. But she'll get chakra blockers, just to make sure."

Kakashi just nodded, somehow he felt strange. Why did it bug him this much?

Tsunade waved him off as she headed for the hospital, while his feet brought him to the training grounds. He didn't feel in the mood to visit the memorial stone. He tried to read but found himself too distracted. He sighed, and looked up through the leaves. The sun was already setting, and he watched how it colored the clouds. During his many years as a Shinobi he had seen many things, many deaths and sure, some things were distracting him, but why now?  
Was it because he felt close to the deceased Sannin? He couldn't decide.

The last day's actions still bugged him, and he left again, wandering through the streets. Somehow his feet led him back to the hospital, and as he entered Tsunade was just leaving the surgery.

"Tsunade-sama?" he asked while trying to sound as bored as always.

"What's wrong, Kakashi?" she asked.

"I'm not entirely sure, to be honest. I… just want to know what's wrong with her," he said and waited how she would react.

"Well, where to start? It appears that she lived on the street and on the run, she's underfed and I won't name you all the deficits she has. She has several diseases I haven't seen in years as well as some infections. Her liver isn't working correctly, hence the yellowish skin color. A healthy immune system can deal with the infections, but hers seems to be close to collapsing. Nothing that won't heal, but it'll take time."

"It appears our colleagues in Kirigakure don't have the best working conditions. But she's a Kunoichi, so she should've earned enough money to live in an apartment, or at least buy food."

"We can only surely speak for our own village, what's going on within the other villages is beyond our knowledge. I'll post two ANBU as guards; I hope this is all is worth the trouble."

Kakashi stood there and looked at her, but his mind was somewhere else.

"If it'll set your mind at ease I can let you know how she's doing," Tsunade suggested and he gave a curt nod.

"Let Mitate check you and then go home and rest. There'll be enough missions to keep you busy in the near future."

He didn't seem pleased but he did as she told him. He started to feel sympathy for the Kiri-nin.


	2. Chapter 2

The second re-written and beta-ed chapter. :)

Last time I forgot: I do not own Naruto.

* * *

Kakashi tried to relax as Tsunade had suggested, but not even reading his 'Icha-Icha' books brought him his inner peace. As he left his apartment, Gai caught him, and fired 'youthful' questions at him. Why he would need help, or if he's going to get old and stuff like that.

"Damn it," Kakashi cursed under his breath. "Damn it, I'm not getting old."

He headed straight for the training grounds and picked out a suitable tree to hide. He looked around to make sure he was alone and sighed contently as he was sure he had his peace. That damned green-spandex-freak was dogging him the whole morning.

_'How should I relax if he's jumping on my nerves like that?!'_ he thought annoyed. _'I'm not old; I just turn 30 this year. Tsunade is over fifty and is still fighting. So what? That idiot! He is nine months older than me!'_

He was enraged and growled silently.

_'He's mostly around the village, rarely on those far-away-risking-your-ass-missions she always sends __**me **__on. I just arrived that morning and she sent me away immediately. No wonder I'm exhausted.'_

He fished his little orange book out of his back-pouch and started to read.

He only managed to read two pages as he heard _**that **_voice again.

_'Man, he's really a pain in the ass,'_ he groaned inwardly and put his book away. _'And here we go again.'_

Kakashi rolled his eye and jumped one branch higher to get out of sight. Gai was walking up to the tree, looking for him.

_'Why can't he just let me be?'_ the copy Nin thought irritated, but rescue came unexpected.

"Gai-sensei!" Lee called out. He jogged up to his former sensei and waved.

"Lee! What are you doing here?" Gai asked surprised.

"I was looking for you for some training," he flashed him a smile.

"Lee, I admire your youthful love for training! To answer your question, I was looking for my eternal rival! He still owes me some answers, and I planned on challenging him to a little race around the village."

"What questions, Gai-sensei?"

"Why he wasn't able to carry that woman anymore. She was everything else but heavy."

"Sakura-san told me that Kakashi-sensei was out on missions during the last weeks without a break. Maybe that had worn him out," Lee said and then shrugged.

"On missions? How many?" Gai asked and looked at his favorite team member expectantly.

"Thirty-five during the last two months."

"_**WHAT**_? I only had twenty!" Gai cried out. "Lee, I have to train! Run with me, my youthful comrade! Five hundred rounds around the village!"

"Five hundred?" Lee asked and cocked a brow.

"Yes! You're right! Eight hundred laps!" Gai exclaimed and Lee saluted.

"HAI SENSEI!"

And they both sped off.

_'Saved,'_ Kakashi exhaled audibly, before he jumped out of the tree and sat down in the grass.

The sunshine was wonderful, and he really felt the exhaustion in his limbs. So he stretched out and placed the book as cover over his face. Shortly after he was fast asleep. He had slept for several hours, but then he woke because someone neared him.

"Kakashi?" Sakura asked cautiously.

"Hmm?" he mumbled back, before he sat up again.

"Tsunade-shisho sends me. She told me to inform you about that Kiri-nin's condition." He curtly nodded.

"She had a liver collapse this morning. Tsunade-shisho was able to fix it again; she had a parasite. Slowly we're working off the list. I didn't think it possible for one person to accumulate so many illnesses," Sakura rubbed her eyes tiredly.

"Due to a lack of medical treatment, I suspect?" he asked.

"Yeah," Sakura nodded and hid a yawn. "I think she hasn't been treated by a medic for ages. It seems she was on the run for quite a time. The pack she carried… but who am I telling this... You've been the one to bring her. A photograph and a few coins, nothing more. Even without a mission I carry more around with me."

"Not more?" Kakashi asked surprised but Sakura shook her head.

"No," she said. "Sad, isn't it? I mean, Kirigakure has strong Shinobi; Zabuza or Kisame, only to name two of them. Somehow she reminds me of Haku."

"How's that?" he asked surprised.

"I can't explain, it's just a feeling. Tsunade-shisho let me read some of Jiraiya's notes, and it's sounding like the same devotion. Maybe I'm just a little overworked and talk too much crap." She managed a tired smile.

"Thank you, Sakura. Are you finished with working for today?"

"Yes. I was just on my way back home. I thought that the chance of meeting you here would be high. See you around, Kakashi."

"See you," he muttered and rubbed his eyes.

Somehow he felt the urge to visit her. Just to make sure that she wasn't a threat, or so he told himself.  
He shook his head and tried to get rid of this train of thought. Said Kunoichi was still unconscious, and what would he say if she wasn't? It wasn't his business; his job was to bring her, and that he did. Kakashi decided against a visit; this day as well as the other and the day after.  
But the third day he had no other choice, as he found out on his way through the streets. Shizune stopped him, as he turned around the corner to visit his favorite bookstore.

"Ah, Kakashi-san. Tsunade-sama wants to speak with you," she said politely and waited if he would try to refuse.

"About that Kiri-nin, I guess," she answered the unspoken question. "She's in her office."

And without a word he walked past her.

"He and his manners…" she mumbled to herself.

* * *

Kakashi entered the Hokage-tower and walked up to the Godaime's office. After a curt knock on the door he opened and stepped in.

"I can't remember that I've called you in," she grumbled from behind the huge mountain of paperwork on her desk.

"You wanted to talk to me?" he asked.

"Yes, I do," she replied and stood up. "The Kunoichi woke up a few hours ago. She said she wanted to talk to you. First I thought about refusing since she isn't in a situation to make demands, but she's still too weak for interrogation and maybe she was instructed to speak with you. Jiraiya trusted you," she said and shrugged.

"As you wish," he said and turned again.

"Kakashi…"she called out as he reached the door. "Don't rough her up."

He looked at her for a long moment and then he gave a curt nod. Tsunade looked at him indifferently and then mimicked his movement, before she sat down again.

As he walked through the streets towards the hospital he wondered what would wait for him. He didn't know anything about the things Jiraiya did. They had talked, yes, but he never stuck his nose in his private matters.

The ANBU were still standing next to the door and nodded towards him as he approached. Kakashi knocked and then entered the room. He heard no reply, and wasn't surprised. As he slowly opened the curtains that surrounded the bed he found her looking out of the window. She still looked ill, but her skin color slowly reached a normal level. Someone had combed her hair and fixed it into a ponytail. It nearly had the same color as his, though it was a little brighter, whiter, than his. As she noticed she wasn't alone anymore she slowly turned her head. Her eyes were closed again, but as she opened them, he looked into lavender colored irises. Somewhat fascinating, he thought.

"You're Hatake Kakashi?" he could hear that it strained her to talk.

He nodded and remained at the stilt of her bed. "You wanted to talk to me?" he asked brusque.

She nodded and it took her a few moments before she spoke again. She licked her dry lips and closed her eyes, concentrating.

"There's a scroll, a blue one, hidden in my pack. Read it, it's important," she slowly opened her eyes again.

"Do they plan something?" he asked, and she nodded weakly.

"And what?" he asked harshly.

"Assassination," she mumbled.

"Who? The Godaime?"

"Hai. As well as you, and Morino…" her voice got calmer by the minute.

"Ibiki?" again she nodded.

He stood there, unsure whether he should believe her or not. But his inner voice told him that she spoke the truth. Her silent plea pulled him out of his thoughts.

"Please don't send me back," she whispered, tears welling up her eyes."It'll be my death."

"It's not up to me to decide that. At the moment you'll stay where you are. Everything else is up to the Hokage."

She sighed and slowly nodded again. "I know," she mumbled, and he stood up.

"I'll tell our Godaime about that scroll."

He turned to leave and as he had reached the door he turned back around and looked at her.

"I haven't asked your name."

She faintly smiled. "Honoka. Sakae Honoka."

He nodded and left, those lavender eyes still present in his mind.


	3. Chapter 3

And the next chapter. Some parts of the story simply didn't sit well with me anymore. I hope you still like it.

* * *

Kakashi went straight back to the Hokage tower and was already expected.

"And? Were you able to find out anything useful?" Tsunade asked and he gave a curt nod.

"Her name is Sakae Honoka. Somewhere with her things there has to be a blue scroll, she told me that it contains information about planned assassinations," he replied and she cocked a brow at him.

"Assassinations?"

"Yes. If she spoke the truth they plan to assassinate you, Ibiki and me," Kakashi said.

"Is that so? Shizune!" Tsunade called out, and a short moment later the brunette entered the room.

"You called, Tsunade-sama?"

"Look through the things of our patient for a blue scroll, and then bring it to me," she ordered.

"Hai," she curtly bowed and then disappeared.

"Do you think she told you the truth?" she turned her attention back on Kakashi.

"I don't know. I couldn't feel a lie," he stated honestly, but she saw that he acted different.

"Kakashi, is there something you aren't telling me?" she asked and watched him intently.

He shortly thought about telling her about those lavender eyes, but then decided against it.

"She pleaded that we don't send her back," he said instead.

"That's not something I wish to think about now, nor is it time to decide. With all that occurred I won't risk the safety of the village. First of all I'll have to look through Jiraiya's notes and see if I can find some hints," she said and went back to her chair. Kakashi understood that he should leave and shortly bowed as he left.

Ten minutes later Shizune entered Tsunade's office again.

"Tsunade-sama? I found the scroll," she said and handed it over.

The Godaime opened it up and started to read; her eyes grew bigger with the progress she made.

"Tsunade-sama? What's wrong?" Shizune asked cautiously.

"That's a detailed list of a lot of their sentinels, the times they change their shifts, the routes they walk, the weaknesses and strengths of the guards... It must have taken her years to collect all that intelligence. They won't simply kill her if they find out… That's high treason against Kirigakure."

The two women looked at each other.

"Why should she take such risks?" Shizune asked confused.

Tsunade sighed and leant back in her chair.

"I cannot send her back, no matter what the Goikenban might say," she mumbled.

"What?"

"I looked through a few of Jiraiya's documents. I know why she had taken such a risk." She looked out of the window an up to the Hokage-monument.

"Her parents had been sent to Kirigakure as spies. Sarutobi-sensei had sent them, but they couldn't leave, it seems. Jiraiya had acted as intermediary. But they were killed before they could return. He had planned to bring her home at the beginning of this year," her eyes looked sad as she whispered "And he couldn't keep his promise."

* * *

Two days later Honoka tried to sit up in bed, but her first intentions failed. She really had to fight that she didn't faint. But after a while she finally managed it and looked out of the window. She could see the kids on the streets, could hear their laughter and felt a little sad. All she ever wished for was to be happy like them; she needed no money, no jewels. Happiness, freedom and peace were beyond price. A light smile rushed over her face as she watched them playing hide and seek. She didn't even notice that Sakura entered her room and watched her from her stance.

"Honoka-san, I have your medicine," she said after a while and the white haired woman winced.  
Sakura nearly waited for her to complain because of the loads of medicine she had to take. Sakura was so used to it because of Kakashi. He was always moaning and bitching, but the Kunoichi in front of her took the pills without any reaction.

"Do you want me to open your window?" Sakura asked her politely.

"Will the ANBU think I'll try to escape?" Honoka asked back quietly.

"You know about them?"

"I've expected them to be there. I would be disappointed would it be otherwise," she stated and then looked out of the window again. Sakura found her eyes quite interesting; she had never seen any like hers. She was used to the Sharingan, the Byakugan and Naruto's Kyūbi-eyes, but those lavender eyes gave her the feeling that she could look beyond the surface.

"So they don't trust me," Honoka said suddenly without looking at her.

Sakura was taken aback. "Sorry, what?"

"It's obvious," Honoka stated calmly.

"Naruto told me a bit of what Haku had told him. Kirigakure seems to treat its gifted Shinobi really bad," Sakura said.

"You met Haku? Such a poor soul…" Honoka sighed and shook her head.

"You knew him?" Sakura asked.

"Many Shinobi in Kirigakure knew him, and after Zabuza trained him they feared him… even more than the demon himself."

"You seem like you've never liked the country you lived in," Sakura stated quietly.

"Would you? I didn't belong there from the start."

"What do you mean?" the pink haired Kunoichi appeared to be confused.

"It... doesn't matter. Either way, Kekkei Genkai are a death sentence in Kirigakure," Honoka replied sadly. "That's something I experienced firsthand."

Sakura remained silent for a while, but after she saw that Honoka wouldn't tell anything more she stood up and went to the door.

"I'll leave the windows open for a while; I'll be back later." And with that she left.

Honoka's eyes wandered over the view she had. Over the houses and up to the monument, then slowly back again. Konoha really was a nice place and she hated fate that she was born in Kirigakure. Her thoughts wandered to her parents and the way they died. All the obstacles she had to overcome, and now she was here, but not free as she had wished.

"Still a prisoner," she mumbled to herself and sighed. "I wish I could be free."

"Who said that it'll stay like this forever?" she heard a voice from behind the curtains.

"Gut feeling. Most of the time these feelings happen to come true."

She didn't seem to be surprised about his sudden appearance.

"So, Tsunade-hime thinks it's better if the Sharingan interrogates me?" she asked and he scoffed.

"Would you like to talk to Ibiki instead?"

"I didn't mean to offend you," she said defensively.

"I only made an offer," Kakashi stated dryly.

"I have a choice?" she chuckled weakly. "Does Konoha treat its captives always this friendly?"

"No need to be that sarcastic," he bit back and sat down on a chair. She still looked out of the window, longing in her eyes.

"I never had a choice. I was always at someone's mercy. Why should that change now?" Honoka asked with a sardonic smile.

"Tsunade-sama seems willing to give you a chance," he replied bored, which caused her to turn her head.

"You're kidding," she said skeptical, but he just shrugged nonchalantly.

"Believe what you will."

"She found the scroll," Honoka surmised and he nodded.

"I was afraid that I might have lost it…" she mumbled and then looked out of the window again.

"What's so important about that scroll?" he asked and she turned back to him.

"Is high treason important enough?" Honoka asked back, her lavender eyes boring right into his visible one. He replied nothing, he just looked at her. Something inside him wanted to comfort her, like he used to do with Sakura, but he didn't even bat an eye.

"I wish for nothing but a chance to live…" she whispered and a sad smile rushed over her face. He noticed that her skin color was nearly back to normal.

"Maybe you'll get your chance," he replied.

"Why did you come? You haven't asked one question," Honoka said and looked at him tiredly.

"I don't need to," Kakashi said and then looked towards the door.

Honoka wanted to say something, but a short knock on the door interrupted her train of thought. Sakura came in, obviously it was time for her pills again.

"Oh, hi Kakashi," the pink haired Kunoichi greeted. "I didn't know you were here. I hope I haven't disturbed you?"

"No Sakura, you haven't. Our talk nearly reached its end," he replied and smiled at her.

"It won't take long, Honoka-san only needs to take her medics," she said and walked over to the bed.

"Are you feeling better already?" she asked her.

"Much better," Honoka answered truthfully.

"That's good. We were worried after your liver collapse. Tsunade-shisho means that we should try slowly to get you back on your feet in two days."

"That would be nice," the white haired Kunoichi said.

"You're sure you're ok?" she asked her again, shooting a short glare at her former sensei.

"I'm fine, really. I'm just a little tired, that's all."

"Well then, don't overdo it. I'll look after you again in two hours," she handed her patient the pills and left again.

"The ANBU have already left," Kakashi said after a while.

Honoka remained silent. He didn't know why he came here in the first place. Well, Tsunade was part the reason, since she said he should keep an eye on her. She didn't appear to be a threat, yet all he had seen in his life told him not to trust her. Even though he wished to, which confused him even more. Then she looked at him again, with those strange lavender eyes. A little like the Third, who seemed to be able to look straight into your soul.

"I'll be around," he said and she just looked at him, before she bobbed her head once.

As he walked down the corridor her voice still echoed in his head, and he wondered why he couldn't get her whole presence out of his head since he had brought her to Konoha. The understanding in her eyes as she had looked at him nearly let him shudder. An eerie thought he tried to wipe away.


	4. Chapter 4

Again a little changes; Sakura and Naruto were ways too childish, it didn't suit them.

* * *

The next day he had a training session with Naruto and Sakura, but he was unable to focus. He didn't know what to make out of the fact that Tsunade actually allowed her to stay. Sure, she **had **brought a scroll, and it looked like information, but who was to tell that it was correct? Something inside him liked the white haired Kunoichi, and he shied away from that feeling. She was still the enemy. His mind chewed on this feeling like a dog on an old soup bone. It had been a long while since Kakashi had felt this…strange. He was still pondering as Naruto landed a straight hit against his shoulder.

"Hey, Kakashi! If you're not with us why train at all? It's no fun if you're **that **distracted," Naruto grumbled and Sakura nodded.

"Naruto's right, that's of no use for anyone of us. We're used to not being taken seriously, but that's a little **too** much."

"Sorry," he mumbled, trying to concentrate again. _'What the heck is up with me?'_ he thought, while forming some hand seals for a nin-jutsu.

"Ne, Sakura-chan… Kakashi is acting weird, even for his standards. You sure you checked him properly after the last mission?"

"Naruto, you…" she started, but broke off to dodge the coming attack, "He's well. Perhaps a bit… overworked."

"I'm **not **overworked. Minds on the job, _ladies_," he said from behind them and both paled. "And it's none of your business."

"Yeah? Well, I think it's a little different. You're part of my family and as far as I know family **cares**," Naruto shot back.

Sakura smiled lightly, Naruto was never one for beating around the bush with his thoughts and feelings.

"I…"Kakashi started and then cleared his throat. "Anyway, we should continue with what we came here for."

His team mates looked at each other with knowing eyes, still too closed up to actually admit feelings out in the open. They continued their training and now he actually seemed to be present physically **and **mentally. Sakura had a guess why he was absent with his mind, she had seen him around the hospital often the last days. Whether it was because the Godaime ordered him to have an eye on Honoka or if it was because of his own suspicions, she couldn't tell. She actually had nice conversations with the Kunoichi from Kirigakure. She was a refreshingly easy patient, who liked to talk. Nothing about mission, not about jutsu or important places within the village. They talked about family, about friends, about daily live. Every now and then those lavender eyes seemed distant, remembering.

It was then, that Sakura fell silent and simply watched her. In these moments she reminded her strongly of Kakashi. With every year that passed she was grateful that her friends and she were growing up in times of peace. Relatively peace as she soon figured out, but no open war. As she saw her former sensei next to the bed of Honoka she saw the recognition in both their eyes; they both suffered silently under their tragedies of the past. Kakashi hid it behind his mask of professionalism, only allowing himself to be foolish on rare occasions when he was alone with either her or Naruto. With Honoka it was different to figure out. She avoided talking about herself and was rather quiet in this direction, but she was open and an active talker when they talked about others. Not a gossip, but interested.

As their training session was over Sakura watched how Naruto was debating with Kakashi. What about, she didn't care. Only to watch them let her smile. Their blond team mate was able to find the good side in everyone. Naruto strived to see those he cared for happy, with Iruka and Kakashi he tried even harder. They had been the first ones who accepted him, who stood beside him no matter what he did. He knew that they believed in him, and wanted to give back some of the happiness he felt because of that. But Kakashi was a brainteaser. She fought a sigh and walked up to them.

"I'm sorry to interrupt, but I'm going home. When do we train again?" she asked.

"In two days, I'd say. Baa-chan has some job to do for me tomorrow," Naruto said and all agreed.

"See you in two days," Sakura said and poofed away.

Later that day Kakashi found himself on the way to the hospital again, and saw Honoka with a nurse in the park. The Kunoichi was sitting in a wheelchair and looked into the blue sky, watching the birds. The nurse said something to her and after a brief nod left her in the shadows of a tree.

"Enjoying the sun?" he asked casually as he walked up to her.

"Yes," she nodded. "It is… a change after the always present mist."

"It appears you're recovering."

"It's said to have happened," she said quietly. "It seems that my skin thought it had to make up for the lacking color of my hair."

Her dry statement let him chuckle and she turned her head towards him, cocking one of her sleek white eyebrows.

"Strange noises… could swear it sounded like amusement," she said, feigning astonishment.

"It's said to happen," he mimicked her voice and she looked at him silently. And again he felt this strange recognition in these strange lavender eyes. Then she blinked and snickered lightly. If it wouldn't have been for his good sense of hearing he wouldn't have noticed at all. Again she looked up into the sky, her expression distant.

"How did he die?" she asked without turning back towards him.

"He fought Akatsuki. Alone," he replied just as silent. She swallowed hard and blinked several times.

"But he was able to send us important intelligence."

"That sounds like him," she whispered and a sad smile tugged at her lips.

"You seem rather fond of him," he stated and nodded.

"I don't have to tell you what happens to you in Kirigakure with Kekkei Genkai," she said and turned to look at him.

"Would you be surprised to hear that my parents both grew up in Konoha? They were Shinobi, sent to investigate undercover. I was born there, but it was never my home. All Shinobi live with the knowledge that they might not return from a mission, but at least you are safe at home. That's nothing I ever experienced. Jiraiya promised me he'd bring me back, he gave me something to look forward to; he gave me hope. How could I not be fond of him?"

The look in her eyes was challenging, but he never replied to rhetoric questions. After a while she nodded and turned away again.

"The looks can be deceiving, we all know that. We are all trained to expect that at every turn along our way," she mumbled. "But why do I tell you? You already know. You're playing the game longer than I do."

"This isn't a game," Kakashi replied calmly.

"It isn't? I'm not sure everyone got **that** letter," she said sarcastically. "We're all pawns, used by those who have the coin to buy our forces. If you fall, you are replaced and the game starts again. It may be a little different here, since the pawns have faces and names, but in the world I grew up you're nothing but a number. You appear on the board when it's your turn, make your moves and then you're wiped away. A dusty file in some rotting archive with no one ever even knowing the person behind the number."

The bitterness in her voice was not to be misheard.

"I hated it, you know? My entire life. After they killed my father they knew who I was," an ironical snicker passed her lips. "I should be proud, seventeen years in hiding. I bet that's a new record, not even Zabuza managed to stay alive on the run for this long."

"Why not simply beat it?" he asked and her reaction was indifferent.

"Even if I wouldn't have worn the hitai-ate, do you really think I would've come anywhere near the village without being detected? I might look like my mother, but I doubt that even the Third would have noticed. Without Jiraiya to affirm my person I'd been killed on sight. Does that sound like an option for you? I like to live; I just don't like the circumstances. I don't even have to work as a Shinobi, I'd work on farms or heaven knows where, if I only had a place to return to without the need to hide."

Honoka clenched her fists so hard it hurt, but she didn't care. In her mind she was back in Kirigakure.

"Sleeping in the sewers, picking scraps of food out of the garbage, fighting stray dogs for a dry place to sleep… that was daily life. You live like a cockroach, always skittering away when the light points on you. Seventeen years… death sounded so welcoming. But then there was Jiraiya, showing up four times a year, collecting what I've gathered and sending me off with a new task. Welcome to the rat race."

Kakashi nodded unseen. He knew that too well himself.

"Sometimes I am so very tired of running," she muttered and then snorted. "But I'm talking your ear off, my apologies."

He caught himself laughing. "Don't apologize for speaking a universal truth. But the ones who withdraw are the ones who get underfoot, not a very nice prospect."

"Yes," she sighed, "You are right. So back to running, huh?"

"So it seems. Speaking of 'running', shouldn't you be inside again?" he asked and she frowned.

"I wasn't aware you cared," Honoka stated and he snorted.

"Sure, I drag you here to see that effort wasted," Kakashi replied and she rolled her eyes.

"If you'd be so kind to call for a nurse…" Honoka started but he took the handles and started pushing the wheelchair towards the building.

"Why waste time?"

Back in her room he helped her out of the chair and she sat down on her bed. She was more than unsteady on her feet.

"How did you manage to fight and run at this state?" Kakashi asked honestly interested.

"With chakra use only, but with my system blocked…" she pulled a face and reminded him strongly of himself.

"That'll pass."

"Hopefully. I feel like…, it's so annoying if you can't do what you want. Even scratching my nose is exhausting," she grimaced.

"Do you need something?" he asked her. "Something to read perhaps?"

"Oh, a book would be nice," Honoka said. "I'll give you the money, as soon as I've got my things back."

He stood up and walked towards the door.

"You don't have to," he said as he opened the door. "See ya." And with that he left.

Honoka was surprised, he was really friendly. But why? She was still brooding as it briskly knocked at her door and she blinked confused.

"Oh, the Godaime herself," she said surprised and Tsunade gave a curt nod.

"I figured there is need to talk. It took me a while to place your family name where it belonged."

Honoka remained silent and watched her. It was obvious that it was hard for her to speak about what would be coming. She knew how Jiraiya had felt for her.

"I needed to do some research to find the documents that stated your parents' leave thirty years ago, but I found them. I am sorry for what happened to them, and without the war they would've returned quickly," the Hokage said and Honoka nodded.

"With many missions and fights going on things like this slip the mind," she muttered and Tsunade nodded silently.

"I know that he promised you to bring you back, and I will keep his word for him, but you have to undergo several tests. Otherwise the elders won't allow it."

"So am I to stay?" Honoka asked and Tsunade gave a curt nod.

"The elders remembered Sakae Daisuke and Ayaka; they even remembered that the Third had sent them on mission. Koharu showed me an old photograph of them; you are your mother's daughter."

Both women remained silent for a while.

"I'm sorry," Honoka whispered after a while and looked down on her hands.

"What for?"

"For Jiraiya. He was a good man," she replied silently and blinked away some tears. Tsunade had to fight them as well.

"That he was," then she cleared her throat and stood up.

"Get well soon. We'll go through the rest as soon as you're healthy again."


	5. Chapter 5

Next chapter done. I'm really happy to see that at least a few read this story. :D Hope you like it. I try my best and after that chap story really will start.

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The next morning she woke up and really felt better. She was able to sit up without big strain and smiled brightly. After she had her breakfast she looked to the window, better the chair which was standing in front of it. Only two meters, only a few steps. 'I think I'll try it.' She thought and slowly let herself glide out of the bed and onto her feet. A strange feeling to stand again after such a while. She reached for the windowsill and grabbed it. Slowly she let go of her bed and step for step she went nearer to the chair. As she reached it and sat down she heard applause.  
"I see you feel better today." He grinned.  
"Weren't you supposed to knock before you enter a room?" she asked back.  
"Oh, I haveknocked, but as it seems you haven't heard it." He closed the door behind himself and pulled a chair next to hers. As he sat down he gaveher a book.  
"I hope you like it, it's a novel."  
She looked at it and read the blurb.  
"Sounds quite interesting, thank you." And she smiled at him. "Tsunade-sama was here after you left yesterday."  
"And? Did she say something?" he asked, even if he could imagine what she told her.  
"I'm allowed to stay. Plus I don't have to take chakra suppressers anymore."  
"Now that' good news." He grinned under his mask.

She looked out of the window, the sun was already shining and only a few fluffy clouds drifted by.  
"Hmm. I think I'd like to go out." She mumbled, and stood up again. Slowly she was standing saver and slowly she turned round to the door.  
"Should I help you?" he asked her.  
"Only if I fall." She winked at him. "It's time for me to start doing things alone again." And on tipsy feet she made it to the door. He slowly walked behind her, ready to grab her arm when necessary. She made it down half the way of the corridor without struggling, but as she passed the reception she tripped over a carpet. He caught her left upper arm and pulled her back upright on her feet.  
"Sorry." She mumbled, slightly blushing because of her clumsiness.  
"Nothing to apologise for." He grinned back at her. "You nearly made the whole way alone."  
She nodded and didn't refuse as he helped her until she sat on a bench outside.  
"Thanks for your help." She said smiling. "And thanks for visiting me so often, Kakashi-san."  
"Ah, that's not a big act, really. And please let that –san, nobody calls me like that."  
"If you want it…" she replied.  
"Yeah, definitely." He said nodding.  
"Well then, tanks Kakashi. Even if you're only here because Tsunade wants you to keep an eye on me." She said with a short side gaze.  
"Do you think I'm just here because our Hokage wants me to?"  
"Maybe…" she said, now grinning. "I think it's not my charming character…"

He suppressed a laughing attack and tried to look serious.  
"What's so funny?" she asked him.  
"What?" he asked her, but knew she caught him. "Nothing." He said.  
"Strange, I could've sworn that… well, never mind." She said and stretched a little.  
"I really start liking Konoha."  
"Oh, it's quite nice here. Ok, the meals at the hospital are not really exquisite cuisine, and the village is a little bigger than that park here…"  
"Would you please stop your sarcasm?" she said poking him. "I was honest. Everything is so friendly 

here, and I think you know pretty well what I mean." She looked a little pouty to him.  
"Yeah, I know." He said sighing. "I know that too well."  
"You understand that, do you?" she asked him after a while silently.  
"What do you mean?"  
"Jiraiya told me a little about you and your sad past."  
He remained silent.  
"Sorry, I didn't mean to…"  
"It's ok, really." He said quickly. "Normally I don't talk about that. Not even my ex-students know."  
"Oh." She made and looked sad again.  
"Nothing to feel sorry for. It's been a long time since then, only the pictures sometimes still hunt me."  
"I know." She said, slightly nodding. "I can still see them too. You found him, right?"  
He nodded. "Not only found him. I took his weapon."  
"Do you still have it?"  
"No. It broke in the battle in which I lost my best friend. He saved my worthless butt, but I was unable to save his."

She kept silent, because she knew too well how he was feeling.  
"And what about you? The only thing we knew out of Jiraiyas documents is that you had to hide."  
"I hated it." She said while looking up to the sun. "Since the day I was born I had to hide. All the time and everything. I was able to deal with kids like Zabuza, but my mum got angry as she found out. Really angry. They trained me to keep a low profile, if someone would have found out about my Kekkeigenkai, I would've been in big trouble. That was the reason why they killed my mum. After a mission were she used it she was on the run, trying to tell us we had to leave but she didn't even reached the house. My father tried to pull me back from the window but it was already too late. I've seen everything. I was just four years old."  
"My mom died when I was the same age."  
"Was she a kunoichi too?"  
"I don't know." He said, shrugging his shoulders. "My father didn't talk about her that much. He told me she was ill, and the medics couldn't help."  
"Oh, that's hard."  
"I was still little. I can't remember that much. But what happened to your father?"  
"My father? He shared her fate. Years later, but nonetheless. He contacted Jiraiya, he never told me how neither did the Sanin. They made a deal, father gathers information for him, and in exchange Jiraiyashould take me with him when I turn twelve. Someone blew his cover, and some ANBU showed up at our home. We tried to flee, but father knew they would catch us both, so he stayed and fought so I was able to run and hide. I think you can imagine pretty well what they've done to him." He nodded, for treason you get death penalty.  
"But you stayed in Kirigakure?"  
"I had no other choice. You're not that much older than me, you know we had the war going on. Jiraiya didn't show up the following years, and after war was over you got that daemon fox attacking your village. A short time later he caught me after I had stolen some food for me and two other orphans. He told me that I had to find out some things for him, and after I've done that I finally could leave that damned country. And the same he told me at the next meeting, and the next and so on."

"If you wouldn't have been there I would've shared my parents' fate too." She opened her eyes a little, now blinking in the sun.  


"Hmm." He made. "Seems like that part of the story is over now."  
"That's what I hope. For now I'm allowed to stay, and I hope that this won't change."  
"Naa, I don't think so. Except you do any crazy things…"  
"Don't start like Tsunade. I won't do anything like that. Now that I'm finally here, after all those things? I may be a little crazy sometimes, but I'm not stupid."  
"I never said that." He stated.  
She smiled. "No, not really said."  
"Hey! I've never asserted something in that direction!"  
"That was a joke!" she now laughed.  
"Very funny. Go on like this and you can go in on your own."  
"If you want me to!" she said and stood up. "Then I'll go in now." And slowly she walked up to the door. And this time without any accidents.

"You're a mark you know." He said as he caught her at the door.  
"Me? You! You acted like a prima donna!"  
"Me? Never!" he said and caught another poke.  
"Yes you do." She said grinning. "Now you do it again."  
"You can't be that ill anymore." He said teasingly.  
"No. Actually I feel pretty well, as you found out this morning. And I really hope that I can leave soon."  
"If you don't stumble over carpets anymore…" And again she poked him.  
"That's not funny, you know."  
"Depends on which perspective you look at it." He stated grinning.  
"So much for the never joking always serious copy nin." She mumbled.  
"Who said that?"  
"That's part of your reputation. And that's something you should know by now."  
"Should I? Well, I never said something like that."  
"You don't have to. One look at you is enough to tell…" she said, opening the door to her room.  
"How come?" he said, as she sat down on her bed.  
"Well, as I said, one look at you is enough. As I looked at you the first time, better as I looked in your eye I have seen sadness, sorrow and guilt. And I only had to add that to the stories I've heard about you to find out that your life is at least as sad as mine, better your past. You're not alone anymore. After all what Sakura-san told me she cares for you, and not only she. You can count yourself lucky."

"Lucky? There are some things I've failed."  
"Really? If you think that about that Sasuke-story, Sakura told me about that, than you are an idiot. Sorry if I say that, but if one really made up his mind no one can change that. That's something you should know too. Feeling guilty for things you couldn't change makes your life harder than it has to be."  
"Some things sound easy…"  
"As I asked my father why they killed mom, and how we go on without her he told me that she in a way died to save us, and the best thing we can do to honour that is to life on. And really life. Back then I didn't know what he meant, but now I think I found out. There's a difference between existence and life." She looked at him and then smiled.  
"Thanks to you I was able to choose."  
"As long as you don't call me lucky fairy…" he stated grinning.  


"NEVER! I don't want to get myself killed."  
Both of them laughed, and he stayed until a nurse brought Honokas' lunch.

During the next days she recovered faster as Tsunade imagined, and a week after they stopped the chakra medics she could let her check out. Sakura accompanied her to her new apartment.  
"As Tsunade told you, it's not that big, but for a start it's ok."  
"Right." Honoka nodded. It was really a single-apartment, but it was ready-furnished.  
"You only have to buy clothes and food. Normal grocers, that's all."  
"If you can show me where?"  
"No problem." Sakura smiled. "That's why I'm here."  
And together they left and started Honokas' first big shopping-tour.


	6. Chapter 6

Next done! My sis inspired me to write the shopping-tour. It's the same with us, I'm already fed up with shopping and she drags me heartless through the shops until I nearly break down. Hope you like still like it.

* * *

Sakura dragged her through nearly every store in the whole village.  
"It's good that you don't have to buy the basic configuration." Sakura winked and laughed.  
"I think we should start with accessories and then we have to find some good clothes for you."  
"And bath and body products. I have to get rid of that hospital-smell."  
Sakura laughed. "You know what? You sound like Kakashi-sensei, he always says the same when he's able to check out again."  
"Well, he has a point." She grinned back.  
"I know, I know. But that's the disinfection, and that's truly necessary. Ok, then first to the chemist. This way please."

After four hours Honoka had her living room full of bags with stuff she had never seen before and never thought about, but as Sakura said it was just the start.  
"You still have no clothes. And that's what we change now, come on."  
"Man, I'm already exhausted." Honoka sighed, but lifted herself up from the sofa. "But not again four hours, ok?"  
"Let's see." Sakura laughed.

Two shops later Honoka already carried four bags and there was no end in sight yet.  
"I never thought that it would be that difficult to find suitable clothes for you, Honoka-san."  
"Let that –san, please. I feel so old if you say that."  
"Ok, then Honoka. The shirts from the kids collection fitted."  
"Yeah, like I would wear a shirt with toys printed on it." She said and grimaced.  
"Then you have to put on weight and then it's no problem to find clothes."  
"I know, Tsunade already told me that she wouldn't allow me to start training if I don't advance with my weight. I have to put on fifteen kilos. I mean, hello? Most women at my age fight with every kilo they want to lose."  
"Count yourself lucky, you don't have to watch what you eat." Sakura grimaced.  
"You neither." Honoka said. "Believe me, I mean it."  
"Just give it up." She said laughing, and stuck out her tongue. "We still have to look for other clothes, in these ones you look nearly like an x-ray with shirt."  
"Very funny." She tried to stay serious, but started giggling. "Then let's go, slowly I'm getting tired."  
"Tired? Ino and I do that every time when we need to relax."  
"Relaxing is something else to me." Honoka laughed.

And again four hours later and with at least ten bags both of them collapsed on her sofa.  
"Man, what a day." Honoka sighed.  
"Yeah, but I think we forgot something." Sakura laughed.  
"What?"  
"The normal grocers. Your fridge is empty."  
"Oh no!" both of them laughed, and it took them a while to recognise that someone was knocking on her door.  
"Coming!" Honoka shouted. "Please wait a sec." She stepped over some bags and nearly tripped, but made her way to the door without accident.  
"Yo, am I disturbing?" Kakashi asked grinning.  
"No, not really. Want to come in?" she said and stepped aside.  
As he stepped into the living room he heard a voice from behind some bags. "Hi Kakashi-sensei."  
"Sakura?"  


"Yeah. I helped Honoka to buy some things, but we've forgotten the normal grocers." She giggled again.

"Seems I have to go out for dinner." Honoka said scratching her head.  
"Oy! Dinner!" Sakura said and jumped up. "Fuck! I forgot that I wanted to meet Ino, Tenten and Hina-chan. What time is it?"  
"Quarter past seven." Kakashi stated.  
"Oy! I'm late. Sorry Honoka, but I got to go! Ino's going to kill me! Bye!"  
"Bye Sakura and thanks!"  
"No problem, you're welcome! Bye!" and with that she closed the door.

"Is she always like that?" Honoka asked, her eyes still on the door.  
"No, not always. But she hates it to be late, that's what she tells me over and over again."  
"I've heard about that habit of yours." Honoka said and smiled. Before she could say anything her stomach grumbled really loud. She blushed slightly and then both of them laughed.  
"Do you know a good place to eat?"  
"If you like ramen I know the very best."  
"Sounds good." She said and put two of her shopping-bags aside.  
"It looks like a store-room here." He said as he followed her to the door.  
"Yeah. Sakura and I were shopping. Most of the things are accessories and a few clothes. I'm too skinny to find suitable things." She said sighing.  
"Bony would be a better explanation. You look like an x-ray." He grinned and dodged a half-hearted punch.  
"That's not very funny. Sometimes I didn't know what to eat. It depended on whether I found something or not."  
"I know. But that's the past. You won't have those problems here. Except you wait too long, if Naruto shows up at Ichirakus' then you'll have to wait quite a long time for your orders."  
"Does he really eat that much? Sakura said something about that."  
"Yeah. He lives for Teuchis' ramen." He laughed. "Now let's go."

"You should try the miso-ramen." He said, as they had sat down.  
"If you say so…" she stated bored, but then smiled. "As he said." She said to Teuchi, who smiled and started cooking.  
"So, where did she drag you?"  
"Everywhere." Honoka laughed. "I have things now I've never seen or had before. Not to talk about pink sofa-pillows." She rolled her eyes and he laughed.  
"Plus I have more clothes than I ever had in my whole life, but all of them are too big. Only the shoes truly fit."  
"Had she showed you where the grocery is?"  
"Nope." She said and shook her head. "And she didn't show me a good weapon store either."  
"The best address for that is Tentens' father, if you want I can show you later.  
Both thanked Teuchi for their meals and started eating.  
"Wow! That's really the best!" she said smiling.  
"As I told you." He grinned.

After she had finished her second bowl she sighed smiling.  
"Man, that was good!"  


"Yeah, and if you go on like this you're back in training in a few weeks." He said laughing.  
"I hope so." She replied with a wide grin. She paid for their orders and they left.  
"What was that for?" he asked.  
"You bought me the book, you visited me and I somehow like you." She answered in a matter of fact tune. He looked slightly confused. "Even if you just have done it because Tsunade wanted you to babysit me, I really enjoyed those visits. They were kind of refreshing."  
"Do you truly think I just came around because of that?" he asked offended.  
"Why then? My charming character?" she asked back sarcastically.  
"You're the first Kiri-nin ever who didn't try to kill me. That awakens kind of an interest."  
"Interest." She repeated. "What am I? A never seen animal or what?"  
"No, I didn't… what the heck are you thinking about me?" he said, feeling highly insulted.  
"Well, the way you express things leads to think in that direction." She stated, looking angry.  
"I didn't meant to…" he started.  
"What?"  
"to offend you." He finished.

First she wanted to stay angry, but now she couldn't keep it up and fought hard with herself to suppress giggles.  
"Friends?" she asked him, amusement clearly visible in her eyes.  
"What?" he asked surprised.  
"Friends?" she repeated and now he got it.  
"Friends." He said and they shook hands laughing.  
"Alright then, 'friend'. What do we do now?"  
"How about a little sightseeing?" he asked grinning.  
"Sounds like a good idea. Except I have to look at more clothes…"  
"Naa, that's not very interesting." He said waving a hand. "If you would please follow me." He said, bowing down and showing her the direction. She laughed and they went down the street.


	7. Chapter 7

Hurray! Next one done. :3 I'm not really sure if I'll let something start the next chapter or if I'll wait a little longer. :D Please tell me if you like it!

* * *

They were sitting on a bench and looking up to the Hokage-monument.  
"Now you know all the important shops and places in the village." He said stretching his legs.  
"Nearly. You haven't shown me the training grounds." She said yawning.  
"And I won't until you're allowed to train." He yawned too. "Otherwise Tsunade will kill me."  
She grumbled. "If that goes on like this it's fall until I can start with that."  
"That's still weeks until then." He said.  
"I know. But I have to put on at least fifteen kilos. And that's really much."  
"But she's right. It'll be too much strain for your body if you start now, and due to the fact that you nearly died after we brought you here… you shouldn't push your luck."  
"I know." She said, and looked up to the sky. The sun was slowly setting, and the clouds were glowing in the most wonderful colours.  
"The thing is, I'm not used to sit around and wait. Nearly my whole life I was on the run."  
"I can understand you pretty well, believe me. Sitting around nearly freaks me out, but if it has to be it has to be. Plus you're released from the hospital, and that's at least an advancement."  
"Right. Being bedridden would be the worst case." She said and looked at her hands.  
"Funny thing is, I never really believed that I could make it. I never believed that I could leave Kirigakure alive. And I almost failed, right?" A sad smile rushed over her face.  
"My parents would be happy to see me sitting here. I only wish that they would've had a chance too."

"But they had a chance to leave too." He said looking curious.  
"Not really. My family was known to have the ambition to flee, so they watched us carefully."  
"But not carefully enough if your father was able to spy for Jiraiya."  
"They took care that we wouldn't leave. They knew that no one would leave alone, only with the whole family. That's why only one of them was allowed on mission duties. The rest had to stay alone. After moms death they kept me around the Mizukage to make sure that father didn't do any crazy shit." She said and frowned.  
"But despite that he was able to do it. Both of them were so skilled, and I'm still just a little Chunin." She snorted.  
"Haven't you said something about keeping a low profile? You have your chance to show how good you are."  
"I hope I can proof it. Somehow I want to go back, only for revenge." She said silently.  
"Isn't it like revenge that you were able to make a bolt for it? You can fight them in another way."  
"Hmm." She made. "Maybe you're right. Maybe it freaks them out if they find out that I'm here."  
"Definitely." He nodded. "You were able to leave and to take the most precious information with you."  
"Right." She smiled widely. "The scroll contains enough information to wipe Kirigakure out."

As Honoka entered her new apartment she was shocked again. That much stuff! Still in bags!  
She sighed, but then started unpacking. All her new clothes in the washing machine and after that she placed the decoration stuff where it belongs. After two hours the apartment looked really good. She sat down on the sofa and took out another book and read until she fell asleep.  
The next morning as she got up her grumbling stomach reminded her to buy the normal grocers. After putting the clothes into the dryer she left and walked down the street to the grocery store.  
It felt a little strange to be able to walk in without the fear of getting caught. But she knew that feeling would become weaker and weaker with the time.

After two days she really felt home in her apartment. She now had everything she needed, and it felt good.  
With the time she was introduced to nearly everyone, Sakura made sure that it were only the 'important ones to know'. Slowly but surely she felt at home in Konoha, and that was the best feeling ever.  
Summer was slowly passing by and one week after Kakashi had left with his squad on a mission Tsunade sent Shizune to tell Honoka that she was allowed to start training again.  
"But don't you dare overdoing it." Shizune told her.  
"Never." Honoka smiled. She nearly was unable to wait until Shizune disappeared. Three days ago she had bought herself a complete new set of weapons, and a new training-suit that now suited perfectly. She packed her stuff and sped off to the training grounds.

It felt so good to feel the cool metal of a Kunai in her hand, and she needed to stitch herself in the fingertip with it to believe that she really held it in her hand. The last weeks she had enough time to build up her chakra, that it was hard not to perform any jutsu. She tried a few of her oldest nin-jutsu, all water-based and then started her self-invented ice-based ones. She trained until she was too exhausted to even stand, and let herself fall down in the grass, happy that she finally was back to what she called a real life.  
As she went back home she recognised that she only had a few days left until it was Kakashis birthday, and she hadn't found a present for him yet. Sakura told her that he likes reading, and Naruto told her that he only read perv-books, so she decided to find another present for him. But she didn't know what. After having a shower and two cups of tea she lay down on her sofa, thinking. He once told her that he liked plants, and that he had even named one.

The next day she walked to the Yamanakas Flower shop. Ino was arranging a bouquet as she entered.  
"Hello Honoka! How are you? What can I do for you?"  
"I'm fine Ino, thanks." She smiled. "Maybe you can help me. I'm looking for a bonsai."  
"Bonsai? Hmm, we only have a few here. Which one?"  
"A Moyogi."  
"Hmm. Please wait a sec. I'll look which ones we have." And Ino disappeared. A few minutes later she came back.  
"We have two of them here. If you want another one, we'll have to order it."  
"Hmm, I'd like a feather maple, if possible."  
"Great." Ino smiled. "One of them is a maple. Follow me please, then you can have a look."  
And Honoka did as she was asked.  
"It's still small, you know they don't grow that fast."  
"It's perfect." Honoka smiled, looking at the little tree.  
"I didn't know you like bonsai?" Ino said.  
"Hmm, actually I love orchids. It's a present."  
"A nice one too, and not cheap, you know that?"  
"I know, Ino, I know. But if friendship isn't worth money, then nothing would be."  
"Right. Do you want to take it with you or would you leave it here until you need it?"  
"I think I'll take it with me." Honoka smiled. "Good to know that you nearly have everything."

As they were back in the shop and Honoka had paid Ino said:  
"You look really good now. So you're finally at home here?"  


"Yeah. Thanks to you all. You are so nice to me, plus I finally started training yesterday."  
"Really? I only have to work here until lunch, how about a little sparring in the afternoon?"  
"Sounds good. It's more fun then." Honoka laughed.  
"Ok then. Let's meet at three at the memo-stone?"  
"Ok." She nodded. "Then see you later." And with that she left, with a bonsai and an appointment later.

Ino was already there when she showed up.  
"Am I too late?"  
"No, you're not. But I had to leave, otherwise my mom would clamp me at the shop again."  
"Good. I hate being late."  
"You sound like Sakura, you know." Ino laughed.  
"If you think so…." Honoka grinned. "Then let's start. What do you want to do?"  
"How about a little Tai-jutsu to begin with?"  
"If you like it." Honoka nodded, and as they had reached the training ground she stood across from her.  
"You start." Ino said.  
"I'd prefer it if you start." She replied.  
"Alright then! Here I come!" and Ino started her attack. She was surprised how smooth Honokas movements were. She was able to dodge nearly every attack.  
"You said you were Chunin?" Ino said after half an hour of sparring.  
"Yes, but I never showed my full abilities. Otherwise I wouldn't sit here right now."  
"Man, I thought that would be training for you, now it's training for me." She laughed.  
"Is it really that hard?" she asked with a side gaze.  
Ino laughed. "Man, I can't imagine that I've trained like that before. Shikamaru is just too lazy and Choji… he's Choji." She laughed even more.  
"If we go on like this, then maybe I'll be able to catch up with Sakura."  
"I don't know her abilities. But if you try hard, why not?"

The next days they spared very often together. Not that Ino could match her, but Honoka hated it to be alone and Ino was a guarantee for fun. She gets more used to her old movements and became faster with her hand signs. Plus she was able to learn Ino two new Nin-jutsu.  
As they sat at Ichirakus after one session they heard a family voice.  
"Today I'll break my personal record! I'll eat until I fell over!"  
Honoka and Ino giggled, so team Kakashi had returned and Naruto was starving like always.  
"Naruto! Can't you behave yourself just once!" Sakura grumbled.  
"Nee, Sakura-chan! I haven't eaten Ramen for weeks now!"  
"Then I think you can wait five minutes longer." She stated angry.  
"Let him go, Sakura. It's useless." Kakashi sighed.  
But Naruto was only a few steps faster than them. "Oy! Honoka-nee-chan! Ino-chan!"  
"Hi Naruto." Both of them replied. "Hi Sakura, Kakashi." The white haired smiled and Ino nodded, her mouthful with noodles.

"How was your mission?" Honoka asked them after they had finished eating.  
"More troublesome as it had to be." Sakura grumbled, shooting Naruto an angry glare.  
"What? What have I done now?"  
"At the moment nothing. But you nearly messed things up again! You can count yourself lucky that 

Kakashi-sensei caught you first. Be thankful that you only got a lump, if I would've caught you…" She led her sentence unfinished. Naruto gulped, he feared Sakura when she was angry.  
"What happened?"  
"Ah, he stumbled in and blew our cover." Kakashi answered her question in his matter of fact tune.  
"And that wasn't the first time." Sakura grumbled.  
"Sakura, I think you should cool down. We're at home and everyone is alive. Except you go on like this…" the copy Nin sighed.  
"I know, I know. I'll go home now, I need a bath to cool down." Before Naruto could say anything Kakashi punched him.  
"You shouldn't push her, Naruto." He said, and looked at the blonde.  
"I didn't do that on purpose." He said.  
"I know that. But you know pretty well how she reacts."  
"Yeah." Naruto grumbled. "I'll go too. Maybe Hinata-chan's at home." He grinned and disappeared.  
"I'll go home too. That was a hard day, but thanks for the training." Ino said and left too.  
"You trained with her?" he asked.  
"Why not? I couldn't train with you since you were on mission."  
"Right, but now I'm home again." He grinned and stood up. "How about a little sparring?"  
"Do you really want to spar now? You've just arrived from mission!"  
"Are you a chicken or what?" he winked. "Come on. You can't be that good."  
"Oy! Don't you dare underestimate me, Hatake!"


	8. Chapter 8

On their way to the training grounds they didn't even recognise that they walked past Tsunade and Shizune. Last one had forced the first one to leave her favourite bar and go back to her office to finish work.  
"I think it would be better to follow them." The Godaime said.  
"Tsunade-sama! You still have paperwork to do." Shizune said indignantly.  
"And that won't run away. Anyways, we had to find out on which level Honokas' abilities are, and this is a good chance for that."

"What makes you so sure that you can beat me?" she said teasingly, poking him into the ribs.  
"Hmm, let's see…"  
"You lost your last two challenges against that green-spandex!" Honoka said.  
"That was because I didn't want to win."  
"Yeah! Sure! Tell that someone else." She laughed and boosted her speed a little, to get out of his reach.  
"You're the one to talk! Who trained with that Yamanaka-girl?"  
"I only wanted companionship! Nothing more."  
"Yeah, yeah! Is it fairytale-time?" he shouted teasingly.  
"Oy Hatake! Be aware!" she shouted back.

After five minutes they had reached the training grounds.  
"So, here we are." He stated. "Ladies first."  
"As you please." She said mockingly and bowed a little down.  
Tsunade and Shizune arrived just in time to catch those little two sentences.  
"Then let's see what she can do." The Godaime stated.

At the beginning it was no problem for her to keep up with him. She matched him in speed at Tai-jutsu, was able to block the punches, but after a while he was able to break through her defence and she caught some hits. She felt like slowing down.  
"What's up with you?" he asked, after she merely dodged a punch aimed at her shoulder.  
"I don't know." She gave back, as she failed her kick against his chest. "I feel like moving in slow-motion."  
"Ok then, how about Nin-jutsu?" he asked and made a backflip away from her.  
"Sounds good." She said and started a few hand signs for an ice-jutsu. Out of nowhere appeared a blizzard, which brought a huge amount of snow.  
"Oy! Not bad." He stated, but after a big fireball-jutsu form his side the snow was nearly gone.  
"Don't think that you get me with that." She laughed. "Don't forget where I come from." And a short moment later a huge bore rolled in his direction.  
"Then I'll try something else." He stated, and started a real row of Nin-jutsu attacks. Honoka had her problems with dodging, and after he nearly burned her hair with a phoenix-flower she thought that she had no other choice.

For one moment it seemed that her lavender eyes glowed and then… she was gone.  
"What the…?" he asked and looked around. He only could feel a little hint of her chakra.  
"I'm still here." He heard her voice. It sounded like it was miles away, like a faint whisper of the wind through the leaves.  
_"Wow! Amazing!" Shizune stated. "All of her abilities. She's nearly able to match him."  
"I think she's better than Kurenai." Tsunade said, still watching them. "I can feel a little of her chakra, _

_but I can definitely not see her." "An amazing Kekkeigenkai." Shizune said nodding._  
"Without your Sharingan you won't be able to see me." She laughed.  
"That's what I thought too." He mumbled, lifting his hitai-ate and revealing his Sharingan.  
"Oy! Still with that I only can see your outlines. What's that? Your Kekkeigenkai?"  
"Yes, you let me no other choice. A little like a chameleon, don't you think?"  
"With the Sharingan it's like looking through glass. I really just can see your silhouettes."  
"The Byakugan is able to see me. But there's more to this ability than that. It makes me three times as fast as usual and it protects me from seventy-five percent damage."  
"Only one quarter damage, that's amazing. I don't think it makes any sense to fight you at that state." He said, sitting down on the grass.  
"Thanks." She said, deactivating her Kekkeigenkai and sitting down next to him. Again it seemed that her eyes glowed a little and then she was completely visible again.

"Interesting, really interesting." Tsunade said as she went to them. "I didn't expect you to be that good. Only Asuma and Guy are able to keep up with him. Really amazing."  
"Keep up with him? Only at Tai-jutsu, and only at the beginning. He's too fast." Honoka said.  
"Fiddlesticks! That's above Chunin-level, you reached Jonin-level a long time ago. I think due to the fact that you were always on the run."  
Kakashi only grinned, and Honoka looked at her unbelievingly.  
"As I said." Tsunade laughed. "But you still need training. I'll give you two weeks time to train, and after that I'll let you fight again, how and when I'll tell you later. If you're able to push your capability a little more Konoha has a new Jonin."  
Honoka still stared at her.  
"Well then, I hope you'll train assiduously. Good evening." And with that she left.

Honoka let herself topple down. Kakashi laughed. "What have you expected? You look like you've seen a ghost."  
"Man, that's… wow. I mean, I'm just here since a few weeks…"  
"Months." He corrected her.  
"I don't give a shit how long! Sorry." She said and blushed a little. "I mean, Jonin? Hello? I only knew a few people here, nearly no one knows or trusts me, and she talks about announcing me to be a Jonin?"  
"Shouldn't you be happy about that?" he stated bluntly.  
"I am happy." She whispered. "I am happy, it's just that I can't believe it." A single tear ran down her cheek, but she didn't care. Somehow that was just too much for her.  
Kakashi still sat, and looked into the trees. He had recognised her tear, but he wasn't really good at dealing with this things, so he said nothing.  
"Don't you want to go home?" he asked her after a while.  
"I know I should go, but I'm too lazy to lift my…"  
He laughed. "Don't tell me that I mopped you up?"  
"Maybe a little." She said grinning.  
"Ha! Then look forward to the next two weeks." He grinned.  
"Slave driver." She mumbled, knowing pretty well he had heard her.

The next two weeks were more than just hard work. Her muscles ached like hell every evening, and after one week she was really fed up with that training.  
"Man, that's pissing me off." She grumbled after the ninth day.  


"Me too. But since we don't know what she's up to, better be prepared." He said, as they sat down to relax a while.  
"Yeah, but it's exhausting." She yawned and rubbed her left leg.  
"But you do quite well." He said, trying to encourage her.  
"Ts." She laughed. "As I could match you."  
"Oy!" he said, and poked her in the ribs. "Why are you that negative?"  
"I have to fight against you now! And to me it seems that I don't make any efforts!"  
"But you do! At the beginning you could only keep up with my speed for five minutes, now you've reached twenty! And you say you don't make any efforts." He snorted.  
"Yeah, sure." She rolled her eyes. "And still three days to go. Man, I'm as merry as a lark when that hell is over."  
Again he laughed. "To be honest, me too."

After their two weeks term Shizune met them to give the following advice.  
"Tsunade-sama wants you to rest tree days, and on Thursday in the afternoon at three she wants you to show up at the arena, then she'll decide if we stay there or went on to the forest of death."  
"Forest of death? Is there something you want to explain to me?" Honoka asked him after Shizune had left.  
"There's not much to say. Everything's a little bigger in there, trees, animals etc. It should be relative easy."  
"Relative. And you think that eases me?"


	9. Chapter 9

Slowly the story is going on. I hope it's not too boring, but I don't want to be hasty. :D Please forgive me for that.

* * *

The designated day they met in front of the arena.  
"You are on time?! Are you ill?" Honoka winked.  
"Naa, Sakura dragged me here. And she said that she bet on us, if we lose she'll rip us apart."  
"Us? Means she knows what Tsunade planned?"  
"So it seems. But we'll see, right?"  
"Right." She nodded, and together they entered the arena.

"Ah, you're here!" Tsunade said smiling. "I decided that it's more fun if we leave and went to the training area 44. You're supposed to team up and have to fight four 'enemies'. Kakashi you'll enter through the north gate, Honoka you through the south."  
"Which opponents?"  
"Not so impatient, Kakashi. I was going to tell you. Guy, Genma, Raido and Neji."  
"That shouldn't be too difficult." He mumbled.  
"I know." She grinned. "They aren't the true opponents. Your true enemy is time. I'll give you one hour to reach the tower."  
"One hour?" he asked her.  
"You got me right Kakashi. Now, hurry. You have to start soon. Time will start running at half past three." She laughed, as they walked away.

"She's crazy. The record in reaching the tower is 97 minutes! Gaara put it up at the Chunin-exams." He sighed. "And with those four slowing us down, plus we have to team up, man this is going to be harder than I imagined."  
"Man, that's annoying." She sighed, and walked silent next to him.

_Meanwhile:_

"_Tsunade-sama, how do you want to know how she's doing?" Shizune asked the Godaime.  
"That's easy, I'll use this here." The blonde grinned and pointed at the Thirds crystal ball.  
"I only have to look what she's doing. I know that Kakashi will perform perfect." She said smiling. With the tomegane-no-jutsu she was able to follow everything._

"_Hey! Guy!" Genma shouted. "Wait a sec. Am I right if I suggest you will try to block out Kakashi?"  
"I thought about that, yes, but my youthful eternal rival will expect that, right?"  
"Right." Raido stated. "But Tsunade told us to slow both of them down."  
"Yeah, and she told us that we'll need Nejis Byakugan to find that new kunoichi." Genma said.  
"Ah, you're trying to tell me that it would be kind of unfair if we would play four against one." Guy stated, and then turned around.  
"Well then, I'll look for my eternal rival!" and with that he left.  
"How can you deal with that all the time?" Genma asked Neji.  
"You may laugh, but with the time you get used to it. I've learned to block that out."  
Raido laughed. "Alright then, let's go to our posts, soon the thing starts."_

As they reached the forest they separated and everyone walked to the designated gate.  
"Good luck." Kakashi winked grinning. "Meet you in a few minutes."  
"Yeah!" she said. "I hope so." She mumbled more to herself.  
Accurately at half past three the gates opened.  
"Then let's start." Honoka said to herself, and stepped into the forest.  
Kakashi was right, she soon found out, as she saw the size of the insects in there.  
"Ew." She made, as a big spider crossed her way. "I hate these insects even in their small form."  
The deeper she entered into the forest the more of these insects showed up. As she stepped into a clearing she recognised an explosive tag on a tree.  
"So I'm finally getting nearer." She mumbled, and tried to detect an opponent. But before she was able to do anything a few Senbon came flying towards her.

As the gate opened Kakashi sighed. He didn't feel any urge to step in that forest, but if Tsunade wants him to, plus at least Honoka might need his help. So he used his Kuchiyose-no-jutsu and summoned his Ninken.  
"What's up?" Pakkun asked his master.  
"I think Guy is somewhere around, and I really don't want to meet him."  
"Ah, got it." The dog grinned.  
"But I need you to find someone else." Kakashi told his smallest dog. "You need to find Honoka."  
"That white haired woman?"  
"Yes."  
"Alright. Can we start?"  
"Yeah. Let's go and hurry. We only have sixty minutes to reach the tower. And we have to team up before we reach it. Got me, Pakkun?"  
"Got you." He replied and sped off.

Bull was able to sniff Guy out after half an hour. Kakashi created one Shadow clone and sent him along with two of his dogs to distract his 'eternal rival'.  
"Ah! Kakashi! My eternal rival! You finally arrived here!" Guy shouted, as he spotted him.  
"Sorry, I'm in a hurry! Got to go!" came the reply.  
"Ha! You better don't think you can escape me!" and he ran behind him.  
"Accepted the bait." The real Kakashi mumbled and sped off in direction of the tower.

"Got her!" Genma shouted, and Raido jumped out of the tree behind him.  
"Better wait until she's down."  
"That won't take long." He grinned, and started to attack her.  
Honoka thought about how she would be able to leave them behind, and got an idea. But before she could do anything, she had to dodge some hits. Genma was starting with Tai-jutsu, and Raido joined him a short time later. As she managed to make a backflip she started forming some hand signs, and as her two opponents landed on the ground she grinned and smacked both hands on the ground too.  
"Have fun with my little frosty jutsu." she said, as both of them stood there, their feet frozen to the ground, and the ice crawled up their legs until it reached their knees.  
"Chakra-fed. Better not use any fire-jutsu, except you want to burn yourselves." And she jumped up on a branch.  
"But don't worry, it'll release you in latest one hour. But maybe I'm back until then to free you." She stuck out her tongue and sped off.  


"I told you not to be hasty." Raido grumbled.  
"Ah, give it a rest." Genma mumbled.

Neji watched the scene out of a tree, but decided to hunt after her.  
Honoka knew that she had wasted precious time, and activated her Kekkeigenkai to run faster. He was shocked as she disappeared out of sight.  
"That can't be." He mumbled, looking around if he had missed anything. He curtly shook his head and then activated his Byakugan. And then he saw her again, but what seemed miles in front of him.  
"How could that be?" he mumbled again, and he sent chakra to his feet to boost his speed.  
After a while Honoka nearly ran into a tree. A dog was sitting right in front of her.  
"Hi." He said.  
"What are you doing here? Sitting in my way!" she said, looking curious.  
"Kakashi sent me. I'll take the lead."  
"Better hurry, one was right behind me. I could feel him."  
"Right. Come on." And he jumped on a branch above her.  
"WA! Only ten minutes left! Shit! We'll never make it on time!"  
"Stop complaining! Start moving!" he barked down.  
To her own surprise she said "Hai." And followed him.

Neji stopped as she stopped too, and looked at his watch. Only twelve minutes left, they would never make it on time. He decided to turn around and free Genma and Raido, before they caught a cold.

Five minutes later they caught up to Kakashi.  
"Finally there, huh?" he asked.  
"Yeah." She said. "But we'll never make it on time. Only five minutes left."  
"What? That late already?" he said shocked. "I don't think we'll make it in time."  
"I hate coming late." She grumbled, but then she had an idea. Her Kekkeigenkai influenced other ones as well. She still had enough chakra left, and it couldn't be that far anymore.  
"How long do we need to reach the tower?"  
"From here on I think ten minutes."  
"Ten minutes." She mumbled. "How much chakra have you used until now?"  
"Not much, why?"  
"Do you trust me?" she asked.  
"Why? What the…"  
"I think there's still a chance for us to make it on time! You have to trust me!" she said. He sighed and then nodded.  
"Then give me your hand." She said. As he took it she activated her Kekkeigenkai again.

"Wow! That's a strange feeling!" he said.  
She laughed. "I know. You feel so light now, right?"  
"Yeah." He nodded. "Now, what have you planned?"  
"I told you that I'm able to move three times faster than normal. We only have four minutes left now, and normally would need eight minutes. We only have to run for it. But don't let go of my hand, the influence is over then. Got me?"  
"Yeah!" he said, and they sped off.

As they entered the tower she deactivated her Kekkeigenkai, and they collapsed on the floor. The big watch above them showed the time. Accurately four o'clock and twenty-nine minutes.  


"Ha!" she laughed breathless. "Made it."  
"Yeah." He nodded, heavy panting too. "I think I can dispel my jutsu now."  
"What?"  
"Guy was hunting a Shadow-clone."  
She laughed. "Cheater!"  
"What? Hey! That's not cheating!" but he laughed as well.

"_As I expected." Tsunade said, leaning back in her chair. "They made it. And her way of stopping Genma and Raido was quite funny." She grinned.  
"Shizune, pay them the entrance fee for the hot-springs. I don't want them to catch a cold."  
"Hai, Tsunade-sama."  
"And Shizune, bring me the papers, we have a new Jonin."  
"Hai." The brunette smiled and left the room._


	10. Chapter 10

I was assiduously. :D Actually I have holydays. Hope you still like it.  
Well, please enjoy.

* * *

One day later Honoka was sitting and relaxing on a branch, as Kakashi came towards her.  
"Hey! Honoka!"  
"Yo! Kakashi! What's up?"  
"Tsunade wants us to show up."  
"When and why?"  
"Later. I think she has a mission or something like that."  
Honoka jumped down and landed right next to him.  
"Should we go?"  
"Naa, that can wait." He said, and sat down on the grass. "The day is too beautiful to spend it in a stinky office."  
"She'll be upset if we…"  
"Who cares?" he grinned. "If she has a mission for us we won't leave before tomorrow morning."  
"If you say so…" she replied and sat down next to him.

"Do you really think she'll send you on a mission tomorrow?" she asked him after a while.  
"Why do you ask?"  
"I mean, tomorrow is your birthday."  
"And? Why should that change something?"  
"Are you afraid of the big-bad-thirty or what?" she said teasingly.  
"Hmpf." He made.  
"Ha! Gotcha!" she grinned.  
"Mockers have to die as well, just if I have to remind you." He said mockingly. "You turn thirty in four months too."  
"I got it." She sighed. "1:1."  
And they started laughing.

Later as they left Tsunades office they truly had a mission, and they truly had to start at five the next morning.  
"As I told you…" he said, as they sat down at Ichirakus.  
"I never thought she would do that."  
"But it's necessary." He said, after he had ordered.  
"Do you want your present before we leave or when we return back home?"  
"You got me a present?"  
"Why not? It's nothing snappy." She grinned.  
"After the mission I think."  
"Good." She said, and thanked Teuchi as he placed her bowl in front of her. She was used to go here, and used to go here with Kakashi. The only thing that still wonders her was his speed at eating. Sakura had explained her, that the 'face-thing' was the matter. He had told her many things until now, sometimes more than his friends knew. He felt a strange trust to her, that understanding, that's why he had told her so much. He had told her about the mission, back then, as Obito died, about Rins death, how he felt about Minatos sacrifice and his father's suicide. She never asked questions, never reacted shocked. She understood him, and somehow that made him feel strange.

"Someday your stomach will kick your ass." She stated bluntly, after she had finished her meal.  
"If you go on eating that hot and that fast."  
"You sound like Sakura. She tells me the same over and over again."  
"Sometimes you are really stubborn, you know." She sighed and rolled her eyes.  
"Would you please give it a rest?" he mumbled.  
"If you say please." She grinned and stuck out her tongue.  
"Please! Pretty please!" he laughed.  
"Ok, assured. Where do we meet?"  
"At the main gate at five."  
"Five? Or at seven?" she giggled.  
"Here we go again." He stated, rolling his eye. "I'll try my best to be on time."  
"Alright. If you say so, I'll believe you. See you then." She said and patted him on his shoulder.

She packed her things and then lay down on the sofa. She knew if she sleeps in her bed she would be unable to stand up in the morning. She was just too knackered. Her first mission in Konoha, her first mission as Jonin, and it had to be an A-ranked. Man!

He left Ichirakus a short time after her, hands in his pockets and the head in thoughts. If someone else would have told him the story he lives in at the moment, he would say that's crazy. During the last weeks he told a complete stranger nearly all things which were bothering him, and he didn't mind at all. And the strangest thing is, he truly trusted her. Every time he spoke with her, it somehow felt like he knew her for ages.  
'Am I completely crazy?' he thought for the third time the last hour. But his heart told him that he wasn't crazy, and somehow he knows that she shares his sorrow.

Actually there was something else that nearly freaks him out. He planned to read in his favourite 'Icha-Icha' book that afternoon, but he was just unable to do it. It never minded him, he even read those books while he trained squad seven, despite that fact that they were much too young to even think about its contents. But he just couldn't read while she was around, he couldn't explain why, it just seemed… wrong.

As he entered his apartment he stared at his backpack. The last missions were quite short ones, and nearly none lasted longer than one or two weeks. Except the last one before he trained with her, the backpack was still dirty.  
"Shit, that's my better one." He swore and had to resist the urge to kick it. Grumbling he went into his bedroom and started rummaging in his closet. A few minutes and many curses later he found an older model. It didn't look that well anymore, but it was still intact.  
"I have to wash that other thing." He mumbled to himself, knowing he would do it when he was back home again. He packed his stuff and then lay down on his bed. He looked out of the window and watched the moon. As the numbers of his alarm clock showed him that it was already past midnight he sighed.  
"Happy birthday, old boy. Sleep isn't as reliable as it was." It still took him a while until he finally fell asleep.

He stood up again three hours later. It was four, and he packed his whole stuff and went to the memorial stone, as he always did. His way led him past her apartment, he could hear her alarm clock ringing. So she was standing up.  
'I got to hurry' he thought, and five minutes later he was standing in front of the stone that carries all the precious and lost ones.

Honoka reached the main gate at five till five. She was shivering as always, when she had slept too short. She yawned, and leant herself against a wall. As she yawned for the tenth time she heard a voice.  
"Good morning. Night was short, right?" he chuckled, as she looked at him with half-opened eyes.  
"You should try to go to bed earlier."  
"Save your sarcasm, Kakaaaa-shi." She yawned while saying his name, and giggled after she saw the expression in his eye.  
"Sorry. I didn't wanted to be blasphemous. " She grinned. "By the way, happy birthday."  
They nodded the guards at the gate farewell and left.

"What's the mission?" she asked him.  
"We have to go to Kumogakure. Infiltrate, assassinate and then bunk. One feudal lord planned an assassination against a member of the Hyuga-clan –again- but the hired shinobi screwed it up. How can one be so stupid? They tried that once and failed, why should that change now? Tsunade wants us to wipe away that blot."  
"That means that'll take some time." She mumbled.  
"Yeah." He nodded. "Tsunade set the mission-time up for eight weeks. Until we have finished that job there's no need to hurry."  
"And if we do the job right there'll be no need to hurry neither."  
"If we can. There should be no trace that can be followed to Konoha."  
"If I use my Kekkeigenkai and a special poison it will look like a natural death."  
"Have you something with you?" he asked her curious.  
"No! Heavens not! I only need some herbs, and that's something I can look for when we're there."

They marched nearly the whole day, only rested when necessary. In the evening when they looked for a place to spent the night he summoned Pakkun to take the watch.  
"Have you ever had friends?" he asked her after they had eaten something.  
"No real friends, if you mean that." She said and looked at him. She smiled sadly. "I didn't even ever had a date. I never trusted one enough to let one near me."  
"I never thought that a country could treat those with a special ability that bad."  
"They feared us, because they can't control the Kekkeigenkai."  
"But that no one trusted you…"  
"If you peach on someone like us it is still completely ok. That's what they expect you to do."  
"Disgusting. The Clans with a Kekkeigenkai are honoured in Konoha. Good, there's only one Clan left, but despite that. No one of us would ever think about something like that."  
"How did they treat you, after you returned with the Sharingan?"  
"They avoided me even more. I never thought it would be possible…"  
"See? I felt the same, though I put myself aside."

Later, as she really felt how tired she was, she snuggled herself up in her sleeping-bag.  
"G'night Kakashi." She yawned.  
"Night." He yawned back. "Pakkun, wake us up early, ok?"  
"As you please." The dog said and stretched.


	11. Chapter 11

Here we go! I hope the whole mission-thing doesn't take that much time...  
But somehow it's necessary, so, please enjoy!

* * *

The next days passed by the same way. They only moved faster as they had left the fire country, because Otogakure was not that far away. As they reached Kumogakure they slowed down again. They transformed themselves so they won't be recognised as shinobi. After masking down their chakra they stepped out on the crowded street. Kakashi had to fight down a laughing attack as he saw her.  
"You look like a mix between Sakura and Shizune."  
"You're the one to talk!" she giggled. "You look like a mix between Genma and Iruka."  
"Call yourself lucky." He grinned, and the similarity to Genma was obvious. "I could have chosen a henge similar to Guy."  
"HA! Never! You would rather die than walk around with XXL-eyebrows." She laughed.  
"Right." He said still grinning.  
"Now, let's get going. We have to find out where we have to go."  
"We have loads of time, if I have to remember you." He said. "Plus we have to find a place where we can sleep. I don't like tents that much."  
"Yeah, a bed is much better." She nodded. "Alright, take the lead, I'll follow you." She said.

In an outlying district they found a pension where they could stay. It looked a little shabby, but better than nothing.  
"Twin room?" the receptionist asked them.  
"Yes." Kakashi said, Honoka remained silent and just looked friendly.  
As he paid for the first week he told the receptionist: "And don't disturb us, we're busy, you know." And winked at him. Honoka blushed and quickly turned around. She knew he only told that to keep the man and his staff away, but the way he said it...

"Was that really necessary?" she asked him, as she closed the door behind them.  
"What?" he grinned. "Too sensible or what?" he grinned and winked.  
"HEY!" she said, poking her finger against his forehead. "Don't give me that Genma-grins! And don't you dare and start teasing me with something like that!"  
"What if I do?" he asked, still grinning.  
"You may regret that." She stated, still slightly red in the face.  
"Sorry." He said. "I didn't mean to…"  
"Just give it a rest, ok?" she quickly said and shoved him aside to put her things on a bed.  
"I'll take this one, if you don't mind?" she said and looked at him.  
"We could…"  
"Don't even think about that!" and the blush became deeper. "Only because you told him, there's no need to really give that impression."  
"Ok, ok." He said defensively. "Then we should push them together before we leave. If someone came in, just in case, you know…"  
"Alright, if you let it be then…"

He looked at her, and grinned inwardly.  
"What?" she asked, as she recognised it. "What's up?"  
"I'm just wondering if you're that cute too if your real self blushes…"  
Her face was now as red as a tomato, she stared at him speechless, but cleared her throat after a while.  
"We're here to work, don't forget about that." She said. "Plus, there's no way you see me blush as long as I don't see your real grin." She stuck out her tongue and started to unpack some things.  


"Oy! 1:0 for you." He stated, and sat down on the other bed. "That was a good one."  
"I was honest." She stated, busying herself with something inside her backpack.  
"I won't forget that." He stated, and ducked down as she threw a pillow.  
"As I told you! We're here to work! We can goofy around when we're finished with our job."  
"Life is hard enough, you know…" he stated, and before he could say anything else she was standing in front of him, nose to nose.  
"This is my first mission for Konoha, and I don't want to screw anything up." She whispered, her eyes small.  
"You won't screw anything up. I just want you to start slowly, that's all."  
She stepped one step back.  
"Alright." She said, taking a deep breath. "Then let's look for the feudal lords home and a place where we can eat."  
"I see, you finally got the point." He smiled, and that made her smile too.  
"Take the lead." She said, nodding to the door.  
"As you please." He chuckled and bowed a little.

"You'll never stop kidding, would you?" she said, after they found the lords mansion.  
"Why? There are many shinobi around here, we only will be conspicuous."  
"But if we act like crazy it's the same." She said.  
"We have to go in." he said.  
"Hey, slow down!" she said winking. "We have time, if I have to remind you."  
"Thanks." He stated sarcastically.  
"Wasn't it that what you told me a while ago? See, that's one of the things I've learned first: Before you start any actions, always look for escape routes first. First we have to check the area around and look for routes to flee. If we have done that we can go in." she said. "Means I go in."  
"But wait!"  
"What? With my Kekkeigenkai I'm invisible, and since there's no one in with the Sharingan or the Byakugan there's no risk. I don't do anything, I just map everything in there."  
"Only that! Nothing more!"  
"I'm not stupid!" she said grieved.  
"I've never said that!"  
"No, but you act like… Never mind. Let's find a place to eat, I'm starving."  
"Ok, and after that we start mapping the area." He said.

Five hours later they were back in their room in the pension. Kakashi was lying on top of his bed, while Honoka was sitting on hers, redrawing the part of the map they mapped this evening.  
"Yo, Kakashi. May you have a look? I'm not sure if the side street was here or there." She said, rubbing the bridge of her nose. Slowly he stood up and stretched.  
"What do you mean?" he said, and looked over her shoulder.  
"I'm not sure if the side street was here or there."  
"I think there." He said, and pointed on the paper.  
"Are you sure?"she asked with a side gaze.  
"Wait a sec." He said and closed his eyes. "I am sure." He stated after a while.  
"Perfect. Then I'm finished for today." She grinned and put the map into a briefcase and put that under her mattress.  
"Thanks." She smiled at him. "Now I'll let you sleep."  
"Oy! How friendly." He grinned, and let himself fell back on his bed.  


"That's my way, you know." She laughed as she switched off the light. "I hope you don't snore."  
"You can tell me tomorrow." He chuckled back.  
"Believe me, if you wake me up with that noise, I'll poke you awake."  
"Where do you want to poke me?" he asked back.  
"OY! Just give it a rest!" she said, throwing a pillow in his direction.

Normally Honoka was not the one to get up early, but somehow she woke up before Sunrise.  
She watched the sun and the beautiful colours, and listened to the silent and constant breaths of her roommate. After a while she decided to wake him up, but wasn't sure how.  
A trained and skilled Jonin at mission, that needs something special, but sometimes the most simple things are the big ones. So she decided to just pull away his blanket, while shouting:  
"Good morning sunshine! Time to lift your lazy butt out of the bed!"  
He nearly shot out of the bed, and looked at her confused.  
"What the heck…? How late is it?"  
"Oy! Just about seven, or something like that."  
"Are you crazy? Waking me up so early! You monster." He blinked and stretched.  
"Thanks, very nice. Better be friendly, if you don't want to upset the monster." She said mockingly.  
"Aha, and what will the monster do if I don't stop? Blush again?"  
"YOU!" she shouted, and jumped on his bed, gripping his pillow and hitting his head with it.  
"I told you not to…!"  
"Ha! Gotcha! Again! That's 2:1 for me. " He grinned. "And? Have I snored?"  
"Not that I've heard it." She said, letting go of him. "Someday I'll pay you back, believe me."  
"You're really cute if you're angry." He said mockingly.  
"Don't overdo it…" she said, trying to look angry. "Don't overdo it."


	12. Chapter 12

It's going on. Slowly the feelings change. Thanks for following the story.

* * *

The next three weeks they spent with mapping the whole village, every side street, every place a guard was standing, everything. Honoka was redrawing that all while Kakashi was lying on his bed watching her.  
"Tomorrow I'll go in." she said as she finished the map.  
"You do what?" he asked her, now back in reality with his mind.  
"I'll go in. I have to find out where he is."  
"I join." He stated.  
"Sure. But I need you to watch from the outside, and warn me, if I got problems."  
"Yeah. I'll start a party when you're trapped." He grinned and she lifted the pillow again.  
"Hey, cool down, I mean I'll start something to distract them. Jeez, what do you think about me?"  
"Want to hear the truth? Or a satisfactory reply?" She shot back.  
He lifted a brow. "There's a difference?"  
"I'm not going to answer that." She said, putting away the map. She sat down on her bed and looked out of the window.

"What's up?" he asked after a while.  
"I just wonder what they do at home." She answered silent.  
"You call it home." He stated. "Do you know what that means?"  
"What do you mean?" she looked at him confused.  
"That means you definitely left you past behind you and started a new chapter."  
"It seems more like a new book." She laughed, but still looked at him.  
"What? Have I something in my face?" he asked.  
"Yeah! You have!" she grinned.  
"What?!"  
"A nose, and a very Genma-ish one, if you ask me." She nearly laughed her ass off and nearly fell down from her bed.  
"Very funny, ha ha." He stated, but to see her laugh that hard made him grin too.  
"Is that your henge or are you really like that?" he asked her after a while.  
"I don't know. But after mission there's enough time to find out."  
"How do you mean that?"  
"Oy, how come that everything I say has to have a hidden meaning! You are a big child! And that has definitely NO hidden message."  
"You're the one to talk! Who is poking and tongue-out sticking the whole time?" he said mockingly.  
"SEE! You do it again!"  
"What?"  
"You're mocking me!"  
"But you mock back!" he stated.  
Honoka lifted the pillow, he made himself ready to duck again, but she pressed it in front of her face and screamed into it. As she put it down her face was red.  
"You drive me insane! Really!"  
"I try my best." He grinned.  
"Aaarrgh! You… you…"  
"What?"  
"Baka!" she said, flipping her finger against his forehead.

The next evening they stood on top of a roof, looking down into the garden of the mansion.  
"You'll keep an eye on me, right?" she grinned at him.  


"Two, if I can. But you should really be careful."  
"You two, if they see you… I'm invisible, don't forget that." She grinned.  
"Good luck." He said.  
"Same for you. See you later." And with that she vanished.

It wasn't really hard to enter the mansion, but it was harder to walk around inside. Loads of servants ran around, only two guards, but they looked around as she passed by. Slowly she went through the whole house, looking in every room. As she finally found the bedroom she grinned.  
On the corridor she had three opportunities to escape, that soothed her down a bit.

After what seemed like eternity she left the building and the grounds and jumped up to Kakashi.  
"I thought you would stay there over night." He stated, lifting a brow.  
"And sharing a room with a fat, old, ugly man? No! Never!"  
"You'd rather share a room with me, right?" he asked her, amusement in his voice.  
"You do it again! I told you already that you are a nice and uncomplicated roommate."  
"Not like this, but I think you may have mentioned something like that."  
"Please, pretty please, give it a rest, ok? Let's leave, I don't want to stay here."  
"If you dare me to move…" he grinned.  
"I already said please." And they left.

"When do you want to start?"  
"Immediately? No, tomorrow. The sooner the better. I want to leave as soon as possible."  
"And how do you plan to do it, if I may ask?"  
"I need a syringe with a real small needle, and one or two plants as ingredients."  
"So you are a poisoner." He grinned. "I hope I'll never upset you."  
"You don't think that I would poison you, would you?" She asked him, obviously offended.  
"No, jeez, that was a joke! I think I better stop joking now, things are going to become serious now."  
"Yeah. You're right. You can go to sleep if you want, I'll stay awake. Best time to collect herbs is time before sunrise."  
"May I accompany you?" he asked.  
"If you want. But don't be upset if it's too boring."  
"Promise I won't. But if I may ask, what do you need?"  
"To be honest, not that much. Normally I use nightshade or jimson weed. But if I can get fame-crown, gloriosa superba, if you want the botanical name, I prefer that. It works faster."  
"How? I've never mixed something poison myself. Sakura would know much more about that."  
"If the concentration is high enough it leads to dyspnoea, paralysis of the central nervous system and cardiac arrest."  
"Fast?"  
"Fast enough for us. But if you don't want me to torture him I can knock him out before I inject it. That would make it more humane."  
"Do what you think." He said. "Dying through blood loss with a kunai stuck in the lower abdomen is cruel as well."  
"You're so right. Do you know where I put the alcohol I brought with me? Don't look like that! I won't drink it! It's too high concentrated!"

"I never expected you to drink it." He said as he walked next to her.  
"Sure." She said and winked. "I never thought you do."  


"Always those games…" he stated and sighed.  
"But you love playing them, otherwise you won't start all the time."  
"I got used to them, and somehow they cheer me up."  
"So you need to be cheered up?" she said, and poked him playfully.  
"Sometimes…"  
"Who's kind of depressive now? You told me that I've started a new chapter. When start you?"  
"What do you mean? My life is ok."  
"Please don't lie. You may can lie to me, but you can't lie to yourself. Why do you torture you that much?" she asked, looking at him sadly. They already left the village and entered the forest nearby. He remained silent, but she continued.  
"You punish yourself for a thing that you can't change. It's not your fault that he died. It was his decision, otherwise you would be dead, and don't tell me the if-I-would-suggestions. Life went as it had to be, we all are what we are because the things that happen around us had happened."  
"I just think that I should've trusted him more."  
"You bonehead! You trust him! And that even more than yourself and your abilities! Every time you use the Sharingan in battle he is with you, fighting. Look at it, you wouldn't be the famous copy Nin Kakashi if he wouldn't be a part of you. He is still alive."

"That's what you say." He sadly sad, and sat down next to a tree, leaning against its trunk. Honoka sighed and kneeled down to face him.  
"My father always told me, that those we had loved and lost are still alive as long as we remember them. Only if we forget them, they are really dead. Don't tell me anything else, please."  
His facial expression was more than just sad right now, and it felt like dying in her heart. She stood up again, and turned round to face the moon.  
"You still remember what I told you when I was in hospital, about existence and life?" she looked over her shoulder and saw him nodding.  
"You don't life, Kakashi, you exist, and that's sad. I haven't seen you fighting yet, but your reputation is that you can kill mercilessly. But the facet of you, you showed me until today is, that you are a really wonderful person, but you've locked that person away. If he truly was a friend, I think he would never want to see you living like this."  
He still looked miserable, and somehow she couldn't stand it any longer.  
"Sometimes you have to let things go to keep them." She whispered, and then jumped on a branch and left. She knew that the plants she was looking for were near, she had seen them as they came here, but she felt that she was crying, and she didn't wants to cry in front of him.


	13. Chapter 13

She was sitting on a branch, hugging her knees as he showed up. He didn't say anything, just sat down next to her. Normally the silence between them was comfortable, but she felt miserable.  
"Sorry, I went too far. I didn't mean to hurt you. That wasn't my intention. I'm sorry."  
"It's ok. But the guilt I feel is something I can't put aside."  
"Maybe he would've had a little more time to life, but that's all." She said silently. "It was war, and dying is something which is so easy and mostly unfair. But at the latest Itachi would've killed him. Now he had his name engraved on the stone and is honoured as a hero, otherwise it would've been a little grave… it's always hard. There are at least three people I could've saved if I wouldn't have been that paralyzed. And you weren't paralyzed, you were blind. And that was not your fault."

"Why do you do that? Why do you try so hard that I feel better?" he asked silently after a while.  
"You deserve it." She whispered, looking to the ground, watching a fox running by.  
He remained silent.  
"You gave me the chance, because you saved my ass back then. You visited me, despite the fact that I'm from an enemy nation, you were friendly and told me so much even though you didn't know me. You trusted me because of a feeling, right? During four weeks, you – as a complete stranger – were nicer to me than my brothers in arms during the last eighteen years. You showed me that there are still people with a good heart and soul. I just can't stand seeing you suffer." She shortly looked at him.  
"Do you really think I haven't recognised that you lay awake really long every evening? That you wake up because of nightmares? All the things you told me about your friend, his habits and stuff, you've take so much of them as your own now… It's good to keep them all in your heart, because they made you the one who cares for his teammates, his village. The one who stands up again and again, but if they or especially him died to save your life, you shouldn't try to stay in the past."

She jumped off the branch and started to pick the things she needed.  
"You haven't really answered my question. Why did you do that?"  
"Because I truly like you." She replied shortly without looking up.  
Again he remained silent, the strange feeling he had for quite a long time now had grown rapidly.  
He watched her, and her words still echoed in his head. Was she right? Would it be ok to let go? All he wanted was to be sure that he didn't betray his friends. He had never looked at the Sharingan-thing from that stance, but she was right. The only thing he felt guilty for was Obitos death. Rin was assigned to another team and on mission far away from him as she died, and Minato and his father had chosen their deaths, at least in a way.

Using the Sharingan was so normal that he never thought about it, but Honoka really hit the point. He trusted this eye and the abilities, in every big battle. If you look at it that way, his friend was truly fighting with him. He rubbed his left eye, Obitos eye, and smiled.  
'That's how I feel…'.  
He faintly smiled. 'You always late-coming-Uchiha, with your lame excuses, I really miss you, you bonehead.' He thought, and the picture of him smiling appeared in his mind. 'Man Kakashi, put that stick out of your ass'  
He looked up to the moon and smiled, she was right, he was with him, still present. He still remembers his voice, his laughing, the way he grinned. Kakashi looked down at Honoka and could hear that she was crying, silently, but she did. Maybe she was right, as long as he keeps his friends in 

his heart everything's alright. 'Let go off the pain, keep the good memories' he thought, and he decided to start a new chapter as well.

"Should I help you?" he asked after a while.  
"No, I already have all the things I need. Atropa belladonna and datura stramonium. We can leave."  
"Do you really need that much?"  
"No, that's enough to kill the whole household, but I want to be sure. And the higher the dose, the faster it's over."

As the first pharmacy opened she bought a syringe and then left with her other 'lab-stuff' as she called it. He followed her with a safety distance, and watched her while she mixed the poison. After she had buried the leftovers, and put the strange looking liquid in the syringe she stood up and put it in a wooden box.  
"Hey shadow, we can go now." She called out as she turned to leave.  
"Oy, another nickname for me?"  
"You followed me like a shadow, or? She should go and rest, I think it's going to be a long night."  
He just nodded and followed her.  
Kakashi paid for the last day, while Honoka was packing their things, so that they only needed to seize them. The map was lying on top of her backpack, she knew the way already.

"Have you told him a story or what?" she asked with a raised brow as he entered their room grinning.  
"I don't think that it's that interesting for you." As answer she pulled a face and sat down on her bed.  
"You really are a big child."  
"Maybe." He laughed. "But I don't think that you're more grown than me."  
She yawned. "I know, poking and throwing pillows. But somehow it's fun." She yawned again and let herself fall back.  
"Are you nervous?" he asked her after a while.  
"A little. I only hope that I can manage to leave without anyone noticing. I've got a really bad foreboding feeling."  
"Sometimes fear can safe your ass." He mumbled, lying down too. And soon both of them fell asleep.

Kakashi woke up before her. Blinking he looked around. After a look on the clock he found that it was about to start. It was ten after ten, and the feudal lord was going to bed in about half an hour. He stood up and stretched, and then walked towards her bed. Gently he shook her to wake her up.  
"Time to get this party started." He said, as she looked at him blinking.  
"What time is it?"  
"Quarter past ten."  
"Already that late?" she mumbled and stood up.

"I think we should take our stuff with us and place it somewhere." She stated, after she had looked through the room if they had forgotten something.  
"Yeah, would be better." He nodded, seizing both bags. "Have you your little cocktail?"  
"Safely in by pocket." She said, patting on it.  
"Well then, let's leave." He said, and opened the door.  
She sighed and nodded.

After he placed the bags tactically correct at a roof they made their way to their initial point.  
"Be careful, no unnecessary risks. In and out, quickly." He said. She curtly nodded.  
"Well, I think I'll start then. Have an eye on me." She said, and disappeared.  
"I hope it'll go as easy as the last time." He mumbled, watching how she made her way into the house.

Honoka entered the house the same way as the last time, over the terrace. She slowly sneaked up to the bedroom, and sat down waiting in a corner of the room. She could hear him walking, his steps slowly coming nearer. She sighed inwardly, normally she hated those actions, and she preferred fighting an opponent face to face. But they tried to kill a Hyuga, and she liked Hinata very much, so he himself had signed his death sentence.  
As he entered the room she pulled a face, he was truly ugly, ugly and fat. He farted and scratched his paunch and Honoka thought she gets sick. He sat down on his bed and it moaned under his weight. As he lay there and had stopped moving she slowly went towards him. He smelled badly, old sweat and something else she better not thought about. She slowly fished the syringe out of the box and looked where she could place her injection.

He was nearly asleep as she stabbed the needle into his neck. She pushed down the chop really fast and immediately he was awake and nearly shot up. Honoka was that surprised, that she deactivated her Kekkeigenkai. His fat fist shot towards her, she was paralyzed and it hit her left eye. The skin burst open, and she could feel her blood spreading. Finally she was able to move again, and hit him against his chest, sending chakra to his heart. He collapsed and fell back into his bed. Fast she activated her Kekkeigenkai again, wiped away the blood and hurried to the door.  
Due to the fat lords scream some servants hurried towards his room. She sneaked out of the door, jumped out of a window and landed on the grass.

She sped through the garden running past two guards, and one hidden shinobi. Her blood dripped on the ground next to him, and he looked up. He followed her trace, and as he looked up on a roof he saw Kakashi. He shouted, and a short time later three other shinobi appeared out of nowhere.

Kakashi watched the whole scene and the only thing he said as he found out he had been seen was: "Shit."  
Honoka landed next to him, fast gripping his arm, so that he would disappear too.  
"Seize our stuff and run. I'll distract them."  
"But…"  
"There's no time for 'but', please, leave! We'll meet at the clearing, where we rested before we entered the village, now, go!" she pushed him to move. She deactivated her Kekkeigenkai, made a shadow clone, used a henge and waited for them to catch up.

It took her two hours to get rid of them, and it was long past midnight as she finally reached the clearing.  
"Save?" she asked him, heavy panting.  
"Save." He said.  
"Good." She released the henge and closed her lavender eyes as she sat down.  
"Man, he really smacked you." He said after looking at her eye.  
"I know, I can't see with this one. Too swollen."  
"What have you done?" he asked her.  
"Nothing a shinobi would do." She moaned as she touched her eye. "I managed to let the clone 

disappear, and they caught me. I can call myself lucky, one of the shinobi had seen a woman, who looked like me, coming out of a bar, hurt too. They found a dead bird on the roof where you waited. And they let me go, but one of them still followed me. Can you sense him?"  
He concentrated but couldn't feel anyone.  
"No, nobody around." He fished a little towel out of his backpack, poured water over it and placed it over her eye.  
"I think that'll cool it a little. You should sleep, I'll take the watch."  
"No, I think I can't sleep." She said, and leant her head against his shoulder. "Man, paralyzed again." She mumbled, cursing herself inwardly.  
"You did your job, and you did it well. Give it a rest." He said silently. "No one had seen you in there, and that was the most important thing, right?"  
"Yeah, you're right. As always." She faintly smiled.  
I didn't take really long until she fell asleep, her head still resting on his shoulder. Kakashi smiled as he saw her relaxed features. He slowly shifter her in a more comfortable place. As he was finished, she lay on his vest, her head resting on his thigh. Gently he tucked a strand behind her ear and watched her sleeping.

* * *

Finally their job is done, and they'll go home. Let's see what they do with the loneliness in Konoha. g


	14. Chapter 14

As she woke up and blinked she saw a single eye looking down on her. He looked tired but he smiled.  
"Good morning, have you slept well?"  
"Hmm." She made, and as she realised where she was lying on she immediately sat up.  
"You were lying there the whole night, do you really think a few moments more matter?" he laughed.  
"You could've waken me up." She said trying to suppress a yawn.  
"Naa, you slept so peacefully." He stated. "And you needed that sleep badly, so I let you be."  
She smiled at him. "Thanks." But as she stood up she moaned again, her swollen eye ached like hell.  
"Want to see a doctor?" he asked.  
"Naa, either Tsunade or Sakura, but no one else. How about breakfast before we leave?"  
"You want to hear if that geezer is truly dead, right?"  
"Right as always." She smiled. "But first I have to look for my sunglasses." She said, and started rummaging in her bag. She used again a henge, this time she looked different, only her shiner reminded of her. A little smaller than usual, the same figure but dark brown hair.  
"Just in case you ask, that was my mom." She said, putting on the glasses.  
"It wouldn't help me much to look like my father." He said, and used the henge of the last weeks.  
"I just don't want to go back with that henge, if the true woman the shinobi had seen shows up…  
I won't take this risk."  
"I know. Let's go." He said, holding out his arm and chuckling she linked her arm with him.

They knew that they made it as soon as they entered the village. There was no other subject than the fat lords death.  
"It seems you made your job really good." He said winking, as they entered a teahouse.  
"That's what I hoped. The dose was high enough, but a skilled medic would've been able to remove it. I could've used other poisons, Shizune offered me some, but those are clearly shinobi-stuff. And that would have given them a trace. Everyone knows that nightshade is poisonous."  
"Naa, I think I know someone who would try and eat one." He laughed.  
"Would he really be that stupid?"  
"That's what I expect." He grinned.

After they had eaten they left and started their journey back home.  
"Seems like fall starts to step back for the winter." Honoka said. "It's slowly getting colder."  
"Yeah, but in Konoha it's warmer, it's more in the south. It only has snow at the end of winter."  
"I don't really need snow." She said, shifting her backpack a little.  
"Why not? It's nice. Sure it's cold, but after a warm tea at home everything's back to normal. And somehow it seems the village is quieter."  
"And that's the point. For me it's too silent already." She stated, kicked a little stone aside.  
"In the apartment, right? I know that." He said with a side look at her.  
She nodded.  
Quite a while later she looked at him and said: "Why have we met that late? I mean, no one had to be alone for that long."  
He just raised his brow and looked at her. "I mean, somehow it's unfair."  
"Better late than never, right?" and he winked.  
"Do you make fun about me again? I was honest!"  
"Me too."  
"So you mean it?"  
"Right."  


She sighed and then smiled.  
"What?" he asked, as he saw her smile.  
"Nothing."  
"You smile because of nothing? That's weird."  
"I'm not weird."  
"Yeah, sure."  
"There you go again! Making fun of me! Like I'll tell you now."  
"Please? Pretty please?" he laughed.  
"No way." She grinned back.  
"Oy! That's not fair!"  
"Oh yeah? Well then, try to force me." She laughed, and stuck out her tongue.  
"You're really crazy sometimes, you know." He sighed.  
"You're the one to talk." She said mockingly. "Maybe I'll tell you some when."

As they rested for the night she said: "Today's my turn. I'll take the watch."  
"Yeah, like I'll let you." He said, as they sat down next to the fire.  
"You'll have no other choice. If we return to Konoha and they see you with a dark bag under your eye everyone will think that it's my fault! No honey, you rest." She said, giving him a look that allows no refuse.  
"If you want it so badly." He stated, rolling his eye sighing.  
"I see you got it." She grinned. "Sleep well." She winked as he lay down.  
"But you wake me up when…"  
"Sure, however you like it." She said sarcastically. "Since I can't pull away a blanket now, maybe I'll poke you away." She grinned.  
"That wouldn't be really fair." He said. "Or I'll wake you up with cold water the next time."  
"Yeah, like you would do that! Do you really think I would poke you?"  
"Want a true answer?" he laughed.  
"I got it." She mumbled. "1:0 for you."  
"Winner! At least for now." He grinned, and then he yawned. "Wake me if you want to change."  
"If I want." She said. "Now sleep, you need it."  
"Right. G'night."  
"Night."

As his breath had slowed down and had gotten deeper she started humming a song. She gently brushed a strand out of his face and smiled. Thinking about him made her feel ways better. 'Because I truly like you' her words came up again. 'I think it's going to be more.' She sighed. 'The longer you're with me…' The presence of her silent apartment was coming nearer with every step now, and she really hated it. It was so soothing to have him around. As she thought about it she nearly laughed, she hadn't even realised how important he already was to her.

He could hear her humming, and now he identified the song. He inwardly smiled, and as he felt her touch he felt a warmth he never felt before. He liked her around, liked her laughing, the sound of her voice and those teasing-games they played. That's something he would really miss, like her steady breath and her peaceful and relaxed face.

The next morning she slightly shook his shoulder, speaking silently: "Time to get up, Kakashi. We still have quite a way to go."  


He blinked and sat up yawning. "Good morning."  
"Morning. Slept well?"  
"Sure."  
"Good to hear." She said, and smiled warmly at him. Somehow he wanted to hug her, but decided against it. He stood up and stretched.  
"I thought you would wake me for a switch."  
"Nope." She said, as she packed her stuff. "I told you 'if' I need to, and there was no need." She grinned.  
"Only two days, then we reach fire-country, and three days longer then we're back home and no need for a watch." A little hint of sadness in his voice, and she caught it.  
"Yeah. Sad, isn't it?" she said, looking at him. He just looked at her and then smiled. Honoka nodded and grinned.  
"Let's go."

Nearly one week later they reached the village hidden in the leafs. Kotetsu and Izumo had the shift at the gate and grinned as they saw them. But they only nodded to them and stepped in without a word.  
"I'll report to Tsunade." She said and he looked surprised. "I can remember that I've heard somewhere you're mostly late with your reports and you generally hate them." She grinned.  
"Hmm, always this gossip."  
"Do you want to go?" she asked, amusement in her voice.  
"No, not really."  
"Well, that's what I've expected. Later I'll bring you your birthday present, if you don't mind?"  
"No, no problem." He said smiling.  
"Yosh, then see you later." She said and walked up to the Hokage-tower.

After a quick report she left and went home, she decided she needs a bath.

* * *

Yosh! Another one done. I slowly come to an end. Sloooowly. :)

Only in case that someone of you asks which song she was humming, for once I didn't listen to Nightwish or Within Temptation, I was listening the song 'right here waiting'.  
I really, really hope you like it.


	15. Chapter 15

I really enjoyed writing the teasings between Honoka and Genma. One of my friends and I do that sometimes...  
Please don't blame me, I am that crazy. And to be honest, I'm completely ok with it.

* * *

Fresh dressed and with the maple-bonsai in her hands she was on her way to his apartment. She knocked and it didn't take long until he opened.  
"Hi, long time no see." He joked.  
"Right, seems like ages." She laughed. He stepped aside to let her in.  
"Thanks." She said and slipped out of her shoes and handed him over the little tree.  
"You told me that you like plants… and I thought this one is beautiful."  
"And you're right." He said. "Thank you." He led her into the living room. After he found the bonsai a nice place he asked her:  
"Do you want some tea? I've nothing to eat here, so…"  
"Never mind. I planned to ask you if you'll join me to Ichiraku later."  
"Sounds good to me." He smiled.  
"And the tea sounds good to me." She winked.

As he was in kitchen she looked around. It seemed that his apartment was bigger than hers, and she felt comfortable here. He owned loads of books, and in the crammed bookshelf were some photographs too. One showed his squad seven, years ago, one was his old Genin-team, and an even older one. She stood up and walked over, that she could see them better. One person on that picture looked a lot like him. Carefully she took it and gently brushed away the dust. His parents, that was sure. A sad smile rushed over her face, again it reminded her at his sad past. He had his mothers' eyes. 'Eye' she corrected her thoughts.

Honoka realised him standing behind her the moment she felt his breath.  
"It had been taken one year before I was born."  
"They look happy." She said silently.  
"They were, until she died." She clearly could hear the sadness in his voice.  
"She was beautiful." She said and smiled. "You have her 'eyes'"  
"I know, and my father's hair." He grinned and rolled his eye. Carefully she put the picture back and sat down again.  
"You have it quite nice here." She said.  
"Hmm, one can live here." He said and shrugged his shoulders. "It's the most silent part of the village, very useful if you return from ugly missions."  
She nodded while sipping on her tea. "For me it would be too silent."  
"And yours?"  
"Not that silent, but a little too quiet right now." He just smiled as reply.

Later, as they sat at the Ichiraku ramen-bar, they talked about the village they have just been.  
"It was dirty." Honoka stated. "And there were nearly as many poor people around as in Kirigakure."  
"Yeah, but the mansion was quite big." He said, after he had ordered his food. "It seems like that geezer had squeezed them out."  
"Literally." She said nodding, and gave up her order.  
"But you can't change it. That's something they have to do, and now they have a chance."  
"Yeah, one good aspect of that whole story."  
"You prefer face to face battle, right?" he grinned.  
"Right as always, sometimes you're spooky." She laughed.  
"Sometimes it seems this sentence is going to become a habit."  
"So it seems, but if you're always right it's nothing that would change."  
And again both of them laughed.

After they had eaten they decided to go in a bar for a drink or two. They were talking about chakra control and weapons as Genma and Raido came in.  
"Yo you two! A little warm up before a hot night?" Genma grinned widely.  
"Better a warm up then getting cold feet, right?" Honoka grinned back.  
Kakashi chuckled, she had told him how she trapped both of them in the forest of death.  
"I know that I'm cool guy." He stated grinning, now even Raido chuckled, because he knew pretty well that Genma was starting his cool-guy-show now.  
"Oy! If you're that cool, better take a seat in the fridge, not that you're going to melt." She replied.  
Kakashi now nearly choked on his drink, while Genma was thinking rapidly about a counter argument. His first intention was only to tease them a bit, but now Honoka was showing him her trained talent.  
"Why would you prefer that always late coming, always bored and porn reading lazy-butt to a cool looking guy like me?" he said mockingly. Now Kakashi and Raido both waited for an answer.

"Do you really want, better need, an answer?" she sighed and then continued. "Unlike you all, I know and understand why he's late, that's first. Second, if I had to deal with all-talk-buddies all the time I'd be bored too. Third, well, what he reads is his thing. And about that lazy-butt, you're the one to talk."  
She looked at him and had to fight back a laughing attack.  
"But to answer your question, I prefer that late-coming-bored-lazy-butt because he's not only cool, he's smart too. And by the way, I don't think chewing on Senbon is cool. Now, have a nice eve." She smiled sweetly at him and faced her drink again. Raido pushed his friend to a table far away from her, Kakashi followed them with his eye, and as he turned back to her she was laughing in her glass.

"Cool and smart?" he asked her curious. "Now that's news to me. Since when?"  
"What's the problem? Only because I never mentioned earlier…"  
"You smacked his self-confidence like hell now." He said, after a short look over his shoulder.  
"And? He pleaded for it." She said. "And I really meant what I've said."  
"Come on, you're kidding."  
"Nope, I was honest." She stated.  
But he kept looking at her.  
"What?" she asked after a while.  
"You haven't mentioned anything like that before."  
"Like it's that easy." She stated.  
"Why not?"  
"You would've laughed." She mumbled in her now empty glass.  
"NO! I wouldn't."  
She placed the money on the counter and looked at him. "Yes, you would." And with that she stood up and left.  
He quickly paid too and hurried to catch up with her.

"Yo, would you please wait?" he said while grabbing her hand to slow her down.  
"But you said something in that direction in the forest."  
"As I told you just a few minutes ago, I meant what I've said." She freed her hand and looked at him. "But if you need to hear it that way to believe me: I think that you're smart and cool, and that's why I… I like you." She said blushing and started to walk again. After a few meters she mumbled to herself: "And I like you more than I actually admitted."  
It took him quite a while to really understand what she told him, and thanks to his good sense of 

hearing he even caught the last sentence. Then he tried to catch up to her again.  
"You're smart too." He said. "And you really hoaxed Genma pretty well. Just in case you want to know."  
"Are you trying to brighten me up, or what?"  
"What if I am?"  
"Try harder." She stated, trying to sound slightly angry, but he caught the slight amusement.  
"Oy! You're really the best." He grinned.  
"Kakashi…. You're a big kid."  
"Maybe…" he grinned. "If I can make you laugh with it…"  
"Yes, you can." She smiled.

Without recognising they were now standing in front of her door.  
"Thanks for walking me home." She said. "And finally you managed to see me blush…"  
"Yeah." He grinned. "And you look cute." Again she blushed and he chuckled.  
"Good night, Kakashi."  
"Night, Honoka." He was already turning to leave as she quickly stretched and pecked him on his cheek , meeting half skin half mask and then disappeared into her apartment.  
It took him his whole way home to comprehend what had happened.  
Later, as he was undressing himself he grinned as he looked in the mirror. He had a slight lipstick-mark on his cheek.  
And for both of them it was a long night with only little sleep.


	16. Chapter 16

First of all: THANK you ALL for reading! As I started the story it took ages until someone read it, and now I got some nice reviews too! BIG THANKS!  
And now second, I have to answer thaniaaaaa.07's question: I've never heard her name in the manga or the anime, but I've heard and read it in some other books and vids. And her family-name is a true one, I've read it in another book... First I didn't know to name her Honoka or Haruka, but the last one reminded me a little of Iruka :D  
Maybe I've heard that name in Sailor Moon or so... I hope this answer is ok for you.

And to say it again: Thank you all for reading, please enjoy it! It won't take long now...

* * *

During the next days Tsunade kept her busy with missions, no big ones, but they took time too. She gave her the chance to earn a little more money. She still got reserves, but to add on wasn't a crime. Due to that she had no chance to meet with Kakashi, and after her action she was nearly happy about that. For her was now really clear that she fell for him, but the other way round? She wasn't sure.  
One week before Christmas she finally had a little time, and used it for a proper shopping-tour. Since there were some holidays she needed to by enough food and stuff. The rest of her free time she used to rummage in her apartment, decorating it 'her way'. She had bought some wonderful orchids, pictures for the walls, more pillows for her sofa and a few new clothes. Now that she finally reached the weight Tsunade told her to, they suited much better. The only disturbing things were the thoughts about Kakashi, which bugged her all the days.

After finishing the normal grocers she started a second tour, to buy Christmas-presents. For Naruto two ramen coupons, for Ino a special hair-care, for Tenten a little Wellness-set, for Hinata several bangles and for Sakura two fingerings and a cinema-coupon.  
For Kakashi she first didn't know what to buy, but then she found a set of Kunai, which he can load with chakra. The salesman promised her that one can call them back, so one can never lose them.  
At home she wrapped all the presents and then she decided to go on a walk, to free her head.

Honoka had wandered the streets up and down for quite a while, but since she didn't wanted to go home she jumped on a roof, sitting down next to a chimney, so it won't get cold. She was so deep in her thoughts, that she didn't even realised that he had shown up, and was standing right in front of her.  
"Are you running away from me?" he asked her, and she nearly jumped.  
"Oy! You shocked me!"  
"I see." He stated. "What's up with you? I haven't seen you quite a while. Are you hiding or what?"  
"No, not at all… Tsunade kept me busy."  
"And that's all? And you want me to believe that?"  
"Yes, I do."  
"Is there something you want to talk about?" he asked her.  
"Nothing that can be solved that easily." She stated, drifting back into her thoughts.

"I missed you around." He said quietly, looking at her. She looked at him surprised.  
"And since I have your attention now, can you please tell me how I can get rid of that lipstick? I still have it on my mask." He grinned.  
" I have some special soap for that." She said, slightly blushing again.  
"What was that for, by the way?"  
"I felt like doing it…" she mumbled, her blush becoming deeper.  
"That's the reason?" he smiled under his mask.  
"Would you please stop kidding?" she said, bright-red-headed, and stood up. After a short look at him she said: "Have you ever thought about the possibility that someone can feel more than just friendship for you?"  
And with that she left again.

His heart beat faster. Could it really be that she loves him? He didn't want to start kidding and somehow he thought he had hurt her. He knew that he loves her, even hearing her name made his 

heart beating faster, and hurting her was the last thing he wanted to do. He stood up, knowing that he had to do something, and he went to her apartment, but she wasn't there yet.

It took quite a while until she came back and she nearly jumped again, as he spoke to her.  
"I want to ask you something."  
"Well, then ask."  
"Hmm, I just wanted to know… if… Are you invited to a Christmas-party?"  
She looked surprised. "No. You?"  
"Naa, they still try but I never join. Would you like to… I mean, only if you want to… celebrate with me?"  
"With you?" she asked, still a little surprised.  
"Only if you really want." He quickly said.  
"I'd like to!" she said immediately, then blushed and cleared her throat. "I mean, yes, sounds good."  
"Fine." He smiled. "Hmm, where? Here, or…"  
"Here." She said smiling.  
"Alright. Then, when do we meet?"  
"At eight?"  
"Eight, ok, I'll be on time. Promise." He grinned.  
"Good." She smiled. "Then see you around."  
"Yeah. Good evening, Honoka. Bye."  
"Same to you. Bye, Kakashi."

At Christmas-day she woke up early and busied herself nearly the whole day. Since she was on missions the last weeks she had no Christmas-tree, only a few fir branches which she arranged with some candles on her couch table. Honoka had bought some cookies, because she had no time to make some herself. The apartment was tidy, the meal nearly ready, so she decided to quickly shower and dress new. A black turtleneck pullover, black trousers and lavender woollen socks. She tied her hair up to a lose ponytail and finished the dinner.  
A short time later it knocked on her door.  
"Coming!" she called and hurried to the door. "Hi!" she smiled. "Come in."  
He slipped out of his shoes and followed her into the living room. He carried a bag with him, and now placed it on the table.  
"I only need a few minutes, then dinner is ready." She said.  
"No hurry." He smiled.  
After he put her present aside he went to her in the kitchen.  
"I didn't know what you'll cook, so I brought white and red wine."  
"Oy, that's nice! I made fish, so I think the white one would suit better."  
"Right. Where have you a corkscrew?"  
"Second drawer on the left." She said, placing two glasses on the table.

"I hope you like it." She said as she put the meal on the table. "It's been a long time since I've cooked that the last time."  
"If it only tastes half as good as it smells…" he stated.  
While they ate she kept her eyes on her plate, she wanted to look up, but somehow she couldn't. Against his usual habit he forced himself to eat slowly and he really liked it. The fish was excellent. As 

Dessert they had ordinary chocolate ice-cream.  
"That was marvellous! And now I'm really full." He grinned.  
"Good to hear you liked it." She replied smiling. "If you want you can go into the living room, I'll just do the washing-up."  
"Naa, I help, and no refusing please."  
Together it was quickly done and only ten minutes later they sat on the sofa, the red bottle of wine with them.

After the dinner with her parents Sakura made her way to Narutos apartment. They planned a Christmas-party, including the whole rookie-nine, team Guy and the leading Jonin and Iruka. Last one had a familiar Christmas-eve with Naruto before, and they asked him to stay.  
"Had anyone of you seen Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura asked after a while.  
"My eternal rival doesn't celebrate. " Guy said. "He never went to any parties."  
"Never?" Naruto asked.  
"Never." Kurenai now said, while trying to silence her son.  
"Naruto." Sakura said taking him aside. "I think we should visit him, even if we only wish him a merry Christmas."  
"Right, Sakura-chan." He nodded smiling.  
"Yo! We'll wait here." Ino laughed.

"Normally we should look after Honoka too." Sakura said as they had left.  
"Yeah, but first Kakashi-sensei."  
But as they reached his apartment no one was there.  
"Strange." Sakura mumbled. "He had left…"  
"Maybe he's at the memorial-stone." Naruto suggested.  
"Hmm, maybe…"  
"Then now Honokas'…" he said and they left.

As the reached her apartment they first thought that she's gone too, but as they looked closer they saw a little light and a half open kitchen window. Sakura looked a little closer and recognised the two people who were sitting at the couch, laughing.  
"I don't think we should disturb, Naruto." She whispered.  
"Why?"  
"She's not alone, Kakashi-sensei's there too."  
"Really?" and he looked through the window too. They were laughing again.  
"I think we should leave." He whispered and Sakura nodded.  
"And we don't tell anyone." She said.  
"Yep, no one." He nodded grinning, and they went back to their own party.


	17. Chapter 17

And here we go again...  
Now an end is in sight... but this is not the last chap. :)  
So please, enjoy!

* * *

„I never thought you would say something like that." He said.  
"What? He asked for it." She replied. "And his expression after I told him to take a seat in the fridge was so funny." Both of them laughed.  
"But I think the look he had after you told him Senbon-chewing is uncool was priceless." He said, and again they laughed.  
"But as I said, I never thought you would jump on that." He stated and looked at her.  
"At the beginning it was truly fun, but as he started teasing you, I somehow felt the urge to defend you."  
"That was nice." He said, still looking at her.  
Honoka started at one of the candles, completely in thoughts, playing with the glass in her hands.  
"Why did you do that? I mean, it feels really good to know someone cares…"  
"Because…" she started slowly, now looking like hypnotised at the dark red liquid in her glass.  
"Because…" she closed her eyes and plucked up her heart, "because I fell for you." She finally finished silently, now putting her glass back on the on the table, rubbing her temples.

A while he remained silent, but then he started to speak: "To tell you the truth, I was astonished as you defended me, but as I said, it really feels good to know that someone cares."  
She just listened, but avoided to look at him.  
"You were honest to me, know I guess it's my turn. First I thought I should keep a distance to you, you were a stranger and I thought it would be better to keep an eye on you. Konoha already had enough traitors and losses due to that, but somehow something on you attracted me." He sighed.  
"I trusted you from the beginning, I never knew why, and I started to like you. That's why I visited you. Tsunade only told me to be careful, but the ones who should watch you, were these ANBU-guards, not me."  
Now she looked at him  
"And then, as Tsunade tested you in the forest of death and you asked me if I trust you, I really did."  
She slightly smiled, and so did he.

"I looked at you as a real friend, since years you were the first one I let get near me. In Kumogakure that feelings changed. Letting you go in there alone, leaving you alone to deal with them… that was like hell, somehow." He looked at the nearly burned out candle.  
"To shorten that all, since then, I felt the same for you. And I was honest too as I told you that I missed you around."  
Honoka sat there, staring at him. Her heart was racing, tears shining in her eyes, but as she recognised his smile she smiled too and flung her arms around his neck. He answered her action as he embraced her.

After they sat there normal again, he asked her: "Want your present now?"  
"Wait, I have to fetch yours." She stood up and went into her sleeping room, but before going there she went into the kitchen, closing the window and the blinds. She took the present (she had stored them all in her closet) and went back into the living room.  
"Do we open them now or tomorrow?" she asked.  
"Why waiting?" he grinned, and they started unwrapping.  
"Oy!" he made as he saw his. "Those are chakra-reacting, right?"  
She nodded.  
"Nice! Thanks! I wanted to by me some of them."  


"So you like them?"  
"Of course I do!"

She slowly opened hers, and her eyes grew wide. "A dreamcatcher!" she smiled, it was really a big and beautiful one.  
"I was looking for one like hell, but I found none!"  
"So you like it?"  
"Sure! Thank you!"  
"I bet this was quite expensive…" he said, pointing at the kunai-set.  
"Like I'll tell you." She said, still smiling happily at her present.  
"Beside these it looks shabby." He mumbled.  
"No, it doesn't" she said. "I love this one."  
"Hmpf." He made, feeling stupid.

"By the way, didn't you owe me something?" she said smirking.  
"I was afraid you would say that…"  
He turned himself to face her.  
"But I can't always make you blush without reasons, right?" he grinned. She only sat there and looked at him.  
"Well then… go on."  
"Are you serious?"  
"Sure! Did I give you any hint to doubt my sanity?" he asked and chuckled.  
"O…Ok." She mumbled.

Slowly she lifted her hands, opening the knot of his hitai-ate. Immediately he closed his left eye. As she removed it his hair fell into his face. She smiled.  
"You really look cool without that thing here." He just rolled his eye. As her fingertips slowly went down to his mask he closed his right eye too. Carefully, so she won't scratch him, she slipped her fingertips under his mask and slowly pulled it down. Again her heart was racing, and became even faster the deeper she pulled it.  
As she finally had it completely pulled down she was stunned, such a handsome, no, really gorgeous face. She could feel how deeply she blushed again. Gently she stroked his face and smiled. Since she hadn't said anything he slowly opened his eye, nearly shivering because of her touches.  
"Why do you hide something that beautiful?" she finally asked.

"I started wearing this as my mother died, and then it became a habit. Plus, if everyone is that stunned, how should I fight a good battle? That would only be knocking them down." He joked.  
"Oh! YOU!" she said grinning, grabbing a pillow and hitting him with it.  
"I thought you have to look good, after I've seen your parents, but I haven't expected that!" she stated. Now he was blushing.  
"I have to admit, that touch of red suits you pretty well." She laughed, and now he hit her with a pillow. They started a pillow fight on the couch, and laughed until they were exhausted.

After a while Honoka started giggling.  
"What's up now?" he asked.  
"Nothing big. I was just thinking…"  
"What?"  
"If Genma starts something like that again, I can add good looking on the positive list." She grinned 

widely.  
"That would clearly kill the rest of his self-confidence. " he laughed.  
"Hmm, but that's not my problem." She laughed.  
"Right." He nodded.  
"Want some tea?" she asked.  
"Sounds good. I'll help you." He winked and followed her into the kitchen.

"Which tea do you want?" she asked him.  
"What do you have?"  
"Just a little selection." She grinned, and opened a cupboard.  
"Jeez! You can open a shop!"  
"Naa, for that it's not enough." She laughed.  
"What do you like?" he asked her.  
"Hmm… Black tea with cherry." She answered and took out the box. "It smells good and tastes even better."  
He nodded and sat down on a chair, while Honoka sat on the kitchen cabinet.

"Do you always sit on top of that?" he asked.  
"Naa, only if I have nothing else to do. A little habit, I think."  
"That's strange."  
"You call that strange? I think especially you shouldn't call something harmless like that strange!"  
"I know that I'm strange. Naruto called me weird once."  
"The only real strange thing about you is reading those perv-books in public." She stated.  
"And my other habits? Sakura goes crazy when I'm late, and Genma mentioned bored, I think." He said teasingly.  
"Hmm… Coming late isn't a natural-born-habit of yours, so that's something we can't count, same it's with you rotten excuses… and being bored is second nature for a genius. Look at Shikamaru, Neji, and Shino… It's the same with them."  
Now the tea was ready, and she slipped down from the cabinet.

"But if you want to be strange… you wear a mask, that's strange enough, but it would be odd if you stop it."  
"Why do you think so?" he was afraid about her answer.  
"See, everyone would think you go nuts, furthermore you'll have loads of fan-girls hunting you where ever you'll go…"  
"Wouldn't be that bad…" he grinned.  
"You think so…" she mumbled.  
"Oy! Jealous, or what?" he winked and she blushed again.  
"What have you told me about colour and suiting? I think now I can give that compliment back."  
"Call yourself lucky that I don't have any pillows in the kitchen." She took the tablet with the tea.  
"Let's go back."  
"Yeah, the sofa is more comfortable…" he grinned, and she smiled.


	18. Chapter 18

So finally done the last one. It sometimes made me really laugh, and I hope you can 'feel' it while you read.  
Thanks to all those who read it, and wrote me some reviews.  
The ending is my favourite part in this fic... I'm in a way insane, you don't have to tell me, I already knew and I' ok with it. :)  
Would be really nice if you write me some reviews and tell me if you like it...  
Now, have fun and enjoy reading!

* * *

"You've said the only thing strange is reading those books in public, you haven't doomed them like the most…" he later started again, only to tease her a little.  
"I only think what you read is your affair."  
"So you don't doom them?"  
"Somehow… they're eventually… sort of… art... after all,… I mean…"  
"Could it be, only eventually, that there is the opportunity that you under any circumstances may have looked into one of them?" he teased her and Honoka looked away quickly.  
"Maybe I accidentally read a few sentences…"  
He could see how her ears became a bright red colour.

He grabbed her shoulders and pulled her back down on the sofa, bowing a little over her.  
"Gotcha! You liar." He laughed. "You read them, right?"  
"Hn." She made stolid.  
"Ha ha, I can't believe it! I caught you!" he nearly roared with laughter now.  
"You have nothing." She said, sticking out her tongue.  
"You're not really in a position to tease, you know." He grinned down on her.  
And about that he was right. She still was lying on the sofa while he sat next to her. She tried to show now emotions, even though it was hard.

"I bet if I put aside some of those books in your bookshelf I'll find them…" he teased, and moved a little. Quickly she grabbed his pullover.  
"Don't you dare and start rummaging in there." Her colour now turned nearly pink.  
"Admit that I've caught you and I'll let it be." He smirked.  
"What if I refuse?"  
"Well, then I think I'll have to lock you up somewhere and look for them."  
"You won't do that! Would you?" immediately she was sitting upright again, leaning towards him and poking him on the chest.  
"You're a dead man, if you do that!"  
"Really?"  
"Oy! Give it a rest! You just can't do that!"  
"You'd be surprised what I can do…"

She grinned after she heard what he said, and now he blushed again after he realised what he just had said.  
"For all I care, you can do what you want, but let my books!"  
"Now that was ambiguous." He grinned.  
"Definitely, if you ask me." She laughed.  
"But somehow that sounds like a good idea to me."  
They still were nose to nose, and he used his chance and kissed her.  
First she was stunned, but to his surprise she answered his kiss. As they broke apart she said:  
"I only admit that Vol. 2 is much better than Vol. 1 and 3 put together." He grinned and then they started laughing again.

They talked through the whole night, enjoyed the other one around, and as Honokas alarm clock rang she jumped.  
"What? Already that late? Shit!"  
"Why? We can just lie down and sleep…"  
"No! Sakura and the girl come around for breakfast! In latest half an hour!"  
"I can't see where you have a problem…"  
"Oy! If they see you leaving… what do you think they would expect?"  
"But it wouldn't be wrong. I mean, we are…?"  
"Yeah, but we haven't…"  
"Do you really…" he started, but then his mind woke up.

"Yes, they would, definitely. At least Ino. I think it's better if I leave now."  
"Sad but true." She said and stood up. "And I have to leave later too. Tsunade gave me another mission to do, but I'm home at New Year 's Eve. Then it's your turn." She grinned.  
"But you don't expect me to cook something delicious like you?"  
"I'll leave that to you." She laughed, took the wine glasses and put them into the sink.  
As he kissed her good bye she had to fight with herself to let him go.  
"It's better you go now, otherwise I may be unable to let you…"  
"I'll remember you when you come home from mission." He grinned.  
"You won't have to." She smiled.

Only ten minutes after he had left Sakura arrived, shortly followed from Ino and then Tenten and Hinata. They had breakfast together and after that they exchanged their presents. Honoka got a cuddy blanket from Sakura; she gave it to her with a wink, from Ino hairstyling-equipment, from Tenten a perfume and from Hinata two wonderful wind chimes.  
Sakura was the last one who left, she would join the mission and had to talk to her.  
"It seemed it was a good evening yesterday." She grinned. "I've heard you laughing."  
"Why? How?"  
"We wanted to wish you a merry Christmas. First we were at Kakashi-sensei's but he wasn't there, so we wanted to pay you a short visit, but as we recognised you weren't alone we didn't want to disturb."  
"Who is 'we'?"  
"Just Naruto and me. And we gave us the promise not to tell anyone." She smiled at her. "You deserve it. Both."  
"Even if you're a few days younger, you're a true friend, Sakura." Honoka laughed and hugged her.

The mission was nothing big, but it took them until late afternoon at New Year 's Eve. Honoka was slightly pissed, she had hoped to return home earlier, to have enough time for a little nap.  
"Are you going to a party today?" Sakura asked her, as they rushed home.  
"Sort of." She grinned.  
"OY!" Sakura laughed. "Give him my regards."  
"Sure." Honoka laughed. "See ya around."

At home she jumped under the shower, after that quickly dressed, elegant but simple, black pants and a black top. She took her time to dress her hair up to chignon, fixed with two hairpins. After a short look at the clock nearly fell over. She was going to be late! She grabbed the bottle Champaign and her cloak and then rushed out of the door. It was going to be frigging cold.

It only took a few moments until he opened the door.  
"Sorry that I'm late." She said, quickly stepping in.  
"Only five minutes." He said. "That would be my record in being on time." He grinned.  
"But for me it's quite too late." She said smiling, pecking him.  
"By the way, greetings from Sakura." She stated, as she followed him into his living room.  
"How do I earn that honour?" he laughed.  
"She had seen us." She answered. "At Christmas."  
During dinner she told him the story, and talked about the mission. He had ordered some sushi at the morning and stored it in the fridge.  
"I'm not really a big cook." He said, scratching the back of his head.  
"Never mind." She smiled. "What have you done the last days?"  
"Usual business, trying to read, get rid of Naruto and avoiding meeting Guy. Nothing big." He grinned.

Midnight was coming fast, and to the tick they kissed like they'll never let go.  
"By the way, do I have to remember you…" he started, but she kissed him again before he could finish his sentence.  
"I told you, you won't have to." She smiled, and slightly blushing forced him back to the sofa.  
"But if I remember right, you once mentioned I'd be surprised what you can do…" she grinned demanding. Now he blushed too and she kissed him again, forcing him to lie back on the sofa. And as she kneeled over him she chuckled:  
"Now would be a good chance…"  
"If you want me to." He chuckled back.  
"Don't make me plead yet." She whispered, as she gently bit his ear.

As he woke up the next day, some when past noon, he remembered what had happened last night. He smiled widely as he saw her snuggled up against him, calm and steady breathing and fast asleep. Her arm was lying over his chest and he gently stroked it. As he kissed her on her head she woke up and blinked.  
"Sorry if I woke you up." He said apologising.  
"If you wake me up like this it doesn't matter." She smiled and then yawned.  
"Slept well?" he asked her.  
"Yeah, pretty well." She giggled, as he tickled her back.  
"What time is it?" she asked, and yawned slightly again.  
"Wait." He said, and turned his head.  
"Around five." He answered grinning. "In the afternoon."  
"Already?" she said.  
"Yeah. How about breakfast?" he joked.  
"Naa." She grinned, kissing his neck. "Why don't we skip breakfast and lunch and start with the dessert?"  
"And you still say you haven't read them!" he laughed.

Thanks to some 'old chapters' of some 'old books' they found a way to start their own 'new chapter' in their 'new book' and writing it is going to be fun.


	19. Part II Chap 1

This is for all those who liked the first part of the story, and since Honoka made her appearance in some other stories of mine as well, I decided to write a little more about her and her relationship to Kakashi. But I don't want to talk too much now, please enjoy and leave some reviews.

I do not own Naruto!!

* * *

She woke up and sat up without blinking, and nearly fell over since she didn't look where she was going.  
"Don't trip, you lay your trousers there yesterday." He yawned.  
"How could I forgot?" she mumbled more to herself.  
"Don't know, but you were quite tired yesterday."  
" I know, besides, it was tonight."  
"Right." He yawned again and sat up. "How about breakfast?"  
"Go and shave first, I can't stand it if you scratch." She smiled and took one of his shirts.  
"Hey! That's mine!" he laughed. "Why do you take mine?"  
"Because yours looks ways better on me than mine would look at you." She stuck out her tongue and walked into the kitchen.  
"How could I've lived without you?" he chuckled, as he walked into the bathroom.  
"Everything's possible!" she called. "But it was really boring!"

She switched on the radio to hear music while she prepared the breakfast. As he heard her singing he smiled. Since she was constant part of his life he felt perfect. It was boring before, but now… things have changed a lot. After he finished his morning rituals, consisting of shaving, washing and trying to comb his hair, he walked over to the kitchen. She was dancing a little while she was waiting for the tea-water to boil. He hugged her from behind, gently kissing her neck.  
"Oy Kakashi! You know I get goose bumps from that!" she chuckled.  
"I know, that's the reason why I do that."  
"Give it a rest." She smiled and sat down. "We have loads to do today."  
"Loads?" he moaned. "Have I ever told you that I hate it if you say that?" he mumbled into his tea cup.  
"Hundreds of times my dear." She said, raising a brow. "But look around… and look in the fridge."  
"You won." He sighed. "I know it's necessary."

"Honoka!" he called a while later.  
"What?" she called back.  
"Do you know where I put my Shuriken-holster…" he called, and then looked around. "And my Kunai…?"  
"Either you put it into the closet in the corridor or you have thrown it under your bed again!"  
She had already finished cleaning the living room and the kitchen.  
"Are you sure?" he called again, his head in the closet. Honoka grinned evilly and pat him on the butt.  
"Sorry, couldn't resist." She grinned. "As I told you, either here or under your bed. But I can't be sure, you put it away."  
"Hn." He made, closing the closet with his foot.  
"This door has a handle, Hatake, so use it." She said sarcastically, and as she looked past him she saw what he was looking for.  
"By the way, I would take these bags." She pointed on top of the wardrobe.  
"How did it get there?" he said taking them and putting them where they belonged.  
"I don't know." She smiled.  
"By the way." He said, pointing at his butt. "You get that back."  
"Try it." She laughed. "But not now, the apartment's still a mess. But before I clean the bath, tooth brushing, now." She said, pointing at the door.  
"Yes Ma'am." He laughed and did what he was told and she followed. They both were standing at the basin, brushing their teeth trying not to laugh about each other.

After they finished the last part of morning routine, she threw him out of the bath.  
"Sleeping room's your turn today, and don't forget the fluff balls under the bed." She grinned.  
"Before I forget it." He said over his shoulder. "It's not 'my' bed anymore, it's 'ours'. Slowly you should be used to that."  
She sighed inwardly but smiled. He was right. A short time before Sakuras birthday she moved to him, but that fact was still not that official. Means Sakura and Naruto knew, but the rest…  
Half an hour later she was finished there too and looked what he was doing.

"And what are you think you're doing?" she asked, and leant herself against the door frame.  
"I'm relaxing, and here's still space for you too." He grinned. "I'm finished, only if you're going to ask."  
"You…" she started, and then laughed. "We still have to do the shopping, but after that…"  
"I'll take you up on that." He grinned.  
"C'mon let's get going." She said, while changing her clothes.  
"Can't you stay that way?"  
"And you go shopping alone?" She grinned. "As if I would walk around in the village butt naked. Stop that right now, please."  
"But staying here would be more fun." He said grinning.  
"I know, but it's still necessary. Pretty please." She said with puppy eyes.  
"Ah, not that! You know I can't resist." He said jokingly, standing up again and got dressed as well.

Out on the streets he immediately fell back in his masked-lazy-manner.  
"You're so predictable." She grinned.  
He just raised his brow and looked down on her.  
"Don't you dare giving me that look." She said warningly. "But that shows you know your roll pretty well."  
"I have to, right?"  
"Hmm, we could admit it…"  
"Yeah, surely." He said and chuckled, making her wanting to punch him. "Not now. You said it would be too early yourself."  
"Yeah, I know. But somehow it's back-breaking." She mumbled.  
"I know." He said, and smiled to cheer her up. At the moment she could only see his eye, but that was enough, she had learned to read him with and without mask.

As they carried home their bags and had nearly reached his, pardon, their apartment, Naruto came running towards them.  
"HEY! Kakashi-sensei! Honoka-nee-chan!"  
"Yo, Naruto. What's up?" he asked.  
"Nothing." He grinned. "I only wanted to ask you to train with me." He grinned sheepishly.  
Kakashi looked at Honoka and she winked smiling.  
"You won't give it a rest otherwise, right?" He sighed.  
"SAKURA-CHAN! He said yes!" he shouted and ran back down the street.  
"He caught you." She chuckled, and unlocked the door.  
"You'll come with me." He said grinning evilly.  
"Fine." She smiled. "Maybe I'll read one of 'your' books then."  


"Ha! Like I'll let you!" he laughed.  
And quickly they unpacked the grocers, storing them where they belong.

As they reached the old training ground from team seven, both of them were surprised, Ebisu and has Genin-squad were there too.  
"You haven't said anything about them." Kakashi stated, nodding at Konohamaru, Moegi and Udon.  
"They just wanted to watch. I couldn't say no." the blonde grinned.  
"I see, and why's Sakura here too?" he asked, looking at her.  
"Maybe I'll join him fighting you." She grinned.  
"Honoka!" he called. "Would you give me a hand?"  
"If I have to." She said, and walked up to him.  
"That's not fair! She has a Kekkeigenkai!" Naruto protested.  
"You don't use your powers, I don't use mine." She stated, fishing two Senbon out of her bag and fixing the quickly made bun with them.

"Two against two." Kakashi said. "As you like to say, fair and square."  
"But you're both Jonin." Naruto grumbled.  
"Do you want to become Hokage or not? I can't remember that a Chunin became Hokage." Kakashi stated.  
"Thanks for that." Honoka hissed silently. "I wanted to relax."  
"See, that's what I wanted too. You forced me to go shopping…"  
"Now that's your revenge, or what?"  
"Sort of."  
"Wait until later." She grinned.  
"No! You won't…"  
"Be a nice guy, and I 'll think about it." She grinned.

"Hey! We wanted to train! You can chat later!" Naruto shouted, aiming at Honoka with his Kunai, but she simply caught it like Kakashi his Shuriken at the survival exam.  
_"Wow!" Konohamaru made. "That was fast!"_  
"Quite fast." Naruto grinned. "Eat this!" and threw a row of Kunai at her, but she simply stepped aside.  
"Naruto, you should know by now that I'm fast." She said, slightly bored.  
"Yeah yeah, I know." He mumbled, and earned a punch from Sakura.  
"Don't mock her." she hissed. "You know she's a kick-ass like Kakashi-sensei; beyond your reach."  
"I know." He said rubbing his head.  
"Take this serious." She said, took a few Shuriken and aimed at Kakashi. But she only wanted to distract him, she knew that his tai-jutsu wasn't as good as his nin-jutsu. She just had to get nearer.

"Finally thing's are becoming a little more interesting." The copy Nin grinned.  
"Yeah, but watch your butt, not that you get it kicked." Honoka chuckled.  
"I thought that's your job?" he joked.  
"Better watch out, not that I'll ..."  
"You won't."  
"Want to bet?"  
"No, not really. Well, then let's busy that kids a little."  
"You shouldn't call them kids, they're soon off age."


	20. Part II Chap 2

And here the next one. I know they're pretty short, but to tell the truth the sequel is written a short time after the first part and actually I'm too busy with another story to re-write it again. I hope you'll forgive me for that. Like always: Please r&r!

* * *

After one hour Sakura capitulated, shortly followed by Naruto.  
"Man, that was harder than I thought." He mumbled, as he let himself fall down in the grass.  
"As I expected." Sakura said, sitting down next to Moegi.  
"That was cool!" Konohamaru grinned.

"What now?" Honoka said, while grinning at him. "I've just warmed up."  
"Don't tell me you want to spar with me now?" he said, rolling his eye.  
"Why not?"  
"Because we just returned from mission and should rest." He said.  
"Oy! You chicken!" she grinned. "You're just afraid that I could kick your ass."  
"You could never." He smirked. "Never ever."  
"Want to bet?" she laughed.  
"About what?"  
"Hmm, I think I knew something…"  
"No! Not about that!" he quickly said. "The loser treats the winner for dinner."  
"Little poet, huh? Well, sounds good." She nodded.  
"Then let's start." He said, taking two steps back from her.

"_What do they do now?" Naruto asked, while sitting up again.  
"I think now they spar with each other." Konohamaru stated.  
"No big deal, Kakashi-sensei will kick her…" the blonde yawned.  
"I'd say they're equal."  
"We'll see." Naruto murmured._

"Are you waiting for an invitation, or what?" she asked.  
"Naa, I'm gentle man, I let the woman the first step."  
"Now that's news to me." She grinned, and attacked with a fast move. She nearly hit his shoulder, he could barely dodge it.  
"You're getting faster." He stated, as he started his counter attack, aimed at her head. Honoka bend herself backwards to get out of reach.  
"Nice move." He grinned, and aimed for her feet now, but she made a back handspring, and then tried to kick his feet, but he jumped over her attack.

"Is that your revenge for my laziness?" he chuckled.  
"Maybe." She grinned, and landed a kick against his chest. "Gotcha!"  
"Your hand-to-hand-combat is improving." He said, after he managed not fell down. "But that's still not enough." He rushed towards her, placing his right leg behind hers, then quickly grabbed her by the shoulder and pushed her backwards, so that she tripped over his leg and fell over.  
Normally she would be able to hold off the fall, but now she hardly hit the ground, and he stopped dead in his movement."Hey, what's up?" he said, while he put forth his hand.  
"I don't know." She answered, as he helped her up. "I saw it coming and wanted to move, but somehow I was unable to…" she staggered and nearly fell again.  
"Have you hurt your head?" he asked concerned.  
"No, but my head is swimming."  
"Then we better stop."  
"Sounds rational." She nodded, and grabbed his upper arm to stabilise herself.

"Show's over." He said as they reached the rest.  
"Do you need a check?" Sakura asked Honoka.  
"Naa, I'm just tired, that's all."  
"If it's not going to change, I want you to come around."  
"If you insist on that." She tried to smile.  
"Yeah, I do." Then she looked at Kakashi. "If she doesn't show up voluntarily, you drag her."  
"Hey! Keep me out of that! She's old enough to decide that on her own."  
"And stubborn enough to refuse. That wasn't a question, it was an order as a medic."  
"I'll show up if necessary. Now I just want to lie down and sleep a while."  
"Then do that."

"Man, what was that?" Konohamaru asked, as the two Jonin had left.  
"They were on a mission, and maybe she's still exhausted." Ebisu said.  
"But from what?"  
"Not all of us were looking for cats and weed out weeds." His sensei looked down on him. "A- and S-ranked missions take a huge amount of concentration and physical and mental strength. The longer they take the more exhausting they are."  
"Yeah. But the last ones she endured pretty well. I think there's something wrong." Sakura said.  
"How's that?" Ebisu asked.  
"Honoka trained with me quite often, and sometimes with Naruto too. Normally she's quick enough that none of our attacks hit, but today I caught her twice and Naruto even four times." She looked in the direction they left.  
"I think I should keep an eye on her."

As they reached their apartment she went straight into the bathroom and threw up. It took her quite a while until she dragged herself on the sofa and lay down.  
"Caught a virus or what?" He asked her, and lay his hand on her forehead to check if she had fever.  
"I don't know. I just don't feel pretty well."  
"Pretty well? You fell down, you're not able to walk alone properly and you puked, and then you want to tell me that you 'just don't feel pretty well'? I think it would be better if you let Sakura check you."  
"There's no need to. Man, don't act like I'm going to die! We returned from a longer and slightly difficult mission tonight. We didn't sleep quite long, for me that's a good explanation."  
"Sakura is right." He said, while he walked into the kitchen, making some tea. "If that doesn't get better, I'll drag you to her. Even if I have to knock you out."  
"You really fondle me." She said sarcastically.  
"I care for you." He said, as he came back with a cup of tea for her. "That's why."

The rest of the afternoon she lay on the sofa, her face was pale and she felt weak, but before she went to bed she insisted on a shower. As she finally lay on the bed her head was swimming again.  
"Maybe I'll go and see her." she mumbled as she pulled the blanket over herself. She could hear that he was taking a shower too, and grinned inwardly because she thought he hadn't heard her. As he came into the sleeping room, rubbing his hair with a towel he said:  
"Finally getting the point, huh?"  
"You really hear everything." She stated, pulling a face.  
"Not everything, but mostly the things I shouldn't hear. Sensei's-illness, like Iruka called it." He grinned.  
Five minutes later he lay next to her.  
"We're just concerned." He said, as she snuggled up to him and he lay his arm around her.  
"I know. But I still think it's nothing big, and I don't want to bother her with trivia."  
"I don't think that health is a trivia." He said and kissed her on the head.  
"Promise me you go, if you don't feel better."  
"I promise." She mumbled yawning and a few moments later she fell asleep.  
'Who's the big kid?' he thought smiling, kissed her head again and drifted to sleep as well.

The next morning:

"Good morning sunshine." He chuckled, as she blinked up to him. He was already awake and grinned down on her.  
"How's your state today?"  
"I hate it if you're that good-humoured in the morning." She yawned. "But actually I feel better."  
"Good to hear." He said smiling. "What do we do today?"  
"What about staying in bed?" she grinned.  
"Oy! Yesterday it seemed like you're going to die and today…but… somehow… sounds good." He grinned, and rolled over, so he was half lying on top of her. She giggled, and kissed him on his nose.  
"But don't expect that to become a habit."  
"Sad." He chuckled, and kissed her neck. "That's something I can get used to." And after a long and claiming kiss he looked into her eyes.  
"Sure you won't change your mind about that?"  
"Not that sure anymore..." she said teasingly.  
"I think I have to persuade you." And kissed her again, first her lips, then her neck and then slowly went deeper. As she shivered with pleasure and grabbed the sheet, she said:  
"Ok, ok, you've convinced me."  
"Now that was easy." He grinned. "What now?"  
"Finish what you started." She grinned challenging.  
"You don't have to tell me twice…"


	21. Part II Chap 3

Sumimasen, short again! My bad. Maybe I'll re-write and make it longer, please tell me if I should.

* * *

The next day he woke her up accidentally as he got dressed.  
"Sorry." He smiled, as he noticed she was awake. "Didn't want to wake you."  
"What're you doing, that early for your circumstances?"  
"I promised Naruto yesterday that I'll train with him today, since Yamato's on mission."  
"That's nice." She yawned and sat up. Yesterday was a fast-day for her, now her stomach was grumbling.  
"Sounds like there's someone hungry." He laughed. "And what are you going to do today?"  
"Nothing big." She said. "Maybe I'll go for a little walk later, fresh air would be good."  
"But no training and stuff, ok?"  
"Yeah yeah." She murmured. "Nothing exertive."  
"Good girl." He teased. "But now I got to leave. I'm already late."  
"How late?"  
"Ten minutes."  
"OY, that's personal record." She grinned.  
"I think you can't be ill." He said sarcastically.  
"That's what I was trying to explain you all…" she mumbled, opening the window and the blind.  
"Maybe I'll believe you that." He said, kissing her on the forehead and then left.

To tell the truth she didn't feel alright again, but the only thing that bothers her was her stomach. It felt like she has got an upset stomach, and that can take a while. After her morning rituals she decided to cock herself a soup, and then going for a walk. Somehow her feet led her to the academy, and on the half way she met Lee.

"Good morning Lee-san!" she smiled.  
"Honoka-san? Good morning." He replied.  
"Finished your morning-training?" she asked.  
"Hai." He answered. "And I broke my own record at push-ups." He smiled happily.  
"Congrats." Honoka laughed. "You train really hard."  
He blushed at her compliment.  
"Guy-sensei always says, no one can reach good efforts without hard training."  
"He's right, training is very important." She nodded.  
"Are you going to train today?" he asked her.  
"Naa, not today. I'm ordered to make a break." She grinned.  
"You look a little pale, if I may say that."  
"I know. I kind of overdid it…"  
"So, where are you going now?"  
"I don't know… I only wanted to go out and get some fresh air."

"I heard that Naruto trains with Kakashi-sensei today. We can go there and watch them." He proposed.  
"Yeah, why not." She answered. "But only if it doesn't disturb your training."  
"Naa, normally I should've rested today too, but sometimes I just can't sit still." He grinned.  
They marched up to the training grounds.  
"Still the same place like years ago." Lee stated. "Same with us, we haven't changed location too."  
"Really? I had to change every day, sometimes even more often." She said, watching Naruto trying to sneak up behind Kakashi, who was reading a little orange book.  
"Was it really that bad?" he asked her curious.  


"You can't imagine how it was, Lee. Here in Konoha everything is so peaceful, and the people so friendly. In Kirigakure the most people are that poor, they mostly didn't know what to eat the next day. For a little money or something to eat they nearly sell everything."  
"That's a worse state of things."  
"You're so right. I lived on the streets for over nineteen years, I lived hand-to-mouth."  
"That's why you looked that bad as we found you."  
She nodded.  
"To tell the truth, we didn't believe that you would make it." He said silently.  
"Honestly, I didn't believe it myself. I had given up. The only thing important to me was, that one of the Leaf-nin got the scroll with all the information I gathered, and that was Kakashi."  
"You worked for Konoha all the time?"  
"Yes." She nodded. "My parents raised me in the faith that Konoha would be the best place for me, a true home."  
"And they were right." Lee smiled and gave her a thumps up. "You belong to us now."  
"That's good to know." She smiled back and then pushed him aside. "Watch out!"

A Kunai came flying towards them, and nearly had hit him. But instead it cut her upper arm.  
"Ouch!" she said, looking at her arm. Not a deep cut, but deep enough to hurt.  
"Wow, fast reaction. Are you hurt?"  
"Only a little cut, nothing more." She said. "But I'll return it to its owner." She said, standing up.  
"Whose is it?"  
"Kakashis." She said, throwing it at him, but it missed him and stuck into a tree.

He recognised something flying towards him and sidestepped, but as it stuck into the tree he noticed it was his own Kunai. The scent of blood was attached to it, and he knew the smell! Honoka! He looked around, and found her, standing next to Lee, who was bandaging her upper arm at the moment. Naruto tried to catch his chance, but Kakashi simply kicked him and pinned him to the ground.  
"Checkmate." He stated.  
"I want a second chance! I can do it better!"  
"Not today, Naruto." He said, and walked towards the viewers.  
"Have I hurt you?" he asked as he reached them.  
"You nearly scored Lee! I pushed him aside and that's the result. Sometimes you should look carefully at ricochets."  
"Naruto knocked it away, sorry."  
"Nothing had happened. I just tell you. Sometimes Iruka is here with his students too. Not that you score one of them."  
"I know." He said, rubbing the back of his head. "By the way, what are you doing here?"  
"I was going for a walk and met Lee. He was so kind to accompany me, and we decided to watch your training-session."  
"So you feel better?"  
"Good enough to leave the apartment. Naruto has improved, has he?"  
"Yes, he has. But he still lacks in taijutsu, that's something he has to train more, if he wants to keep up with Sasuke."

"Come on Kakashi-sensei! Only once more!" Naruto pleaded.  
"No, for me it's enough for today." Kakashi said, trying to get rid of him.  
"I can spar with you, if you want to." Lee said.  
"Oy, bushy-brows! I didn't know you were here." Naruto grinned.  
"You need taijutsu-training, and here you have a master offering you a little help."  
"Hmpf." Naruto grumbled.  
"If you want to get better you shouldn't refuse an offer. Do you want to stay Chunin? I've never heard a Chunin became Hokage." Kakashi teased.  
"Yosh! Then let's spar bushy-brows." Naruto grinned and Lee grinned back.  
"But I won't go easy on you."  
"I haven't expected you to."

"You really know which button you have to push." She grinned.  
"Would be sad if I wouldn't. I train that knucklehead long enough." He chuckled.  
"And you've trained him well."  
"But the most efforts he made under Jiraiya. Sometimes I feel bad because I trained Sasuke more than him."  
"But he didn't seem to be angry because of that. He likes you, for him you are part of something similar to a family." She said, watching him fighting Lee.  
"It's the same the other way round. Somehow he reminds me of Obito."  
"It's good to have someone to care for, it puts sense in a life." Honoka stated, a slight smile on her face, while she looked into the distance.

"What's up with you?" he asked her after a while.  
"I don't know. Somehow I feel strange, like something is going to happen."  
"Something bad?"  
She nodded. "Yeah, that's how it feels. Like a storm is approaching."  
"You're safe in Konoha." He said, looking at her.  
"I know. But I'm not always here… slowly I'm building up a reputation, and the name Sakae is known in Kirigakure."  
"What's the matter? You're never alone on missions."  
"I know. And I know that it's only one person who wants to get me in his hands. Yori."  
"Yori?"  
"He was leader of the life guards of the Mizukage. But something had happened, and he displaced him. He was in the same position as Ibiki is here as I left. Many people murmured that he is pulling the strings in the background. Killing him would weaken the government, and would allow a change."  
"Why didn't they rise to kill him?"  
"Who? Yori? Zabuza tried twice, and even Kisame tried and failed."  
"You would be able to do it, with your Kekkei Genkai."  
"I think so, but it contains a risk. He knew about it, he wanted to marry my mom, but she rebuffed him. Dad said that this could've been a reason why he let her got killed."  
"So you would take your chance for revenge, if it's given to you?"  
"Definitely." She nodded. "Definitely."


	22. Part II Chap 4

Here we go again... next chap. Please enjoy.

* * *

Two days later she felt sick again, and sneaked out of the sleeping room and into the bath room. A short time later she threw up, after that she sat down on the floor, leaning herself heavy breathing against the bathtub.  
"Go and see Sakura later, please." She looked up to him and saw his concerned face.  
He knelt down next to her, laying his hand on her forehead.  
"A little fever." He stated. "Able to stand up again?" she nodded, and he helped her up. He lay his arm around her as they were lying in bed again, rocking her a little.

A few hours later he accompanied her to Sakura.  
"So you want me to check you? Finally."  
Honoka only nodded, still looking pale.  
"I'll wait for you outside." Kakashi stated, and left the room.  
After a few normal checks, Sakura asked her:  
"Sorry if I ask you that, but, have you problems with PMS?"  
"No, normally not." She replied.  
"Hmm, when was you last menstrual period?"  
"Two weeks ago."  
"Convulsions?"  
"Sometimes."  
"Alright." Sakura said, scribbling down something on her report. "Well, I'll give you something to calm your stomach, but I can't find anything… I'll take a little blood from you, just to be sure. I'll tell you the results in two days, lab is busy."  
"Ok." Honoka said, taking the little bottle Sakura handed her.

Kakashi waited patiently in the corridor.  
"Well, I couldn't find anything. I gave her drops to calm her stomach and took some blood, just to be sure. It'll take two days, than I can tell you the results. But it really seems that everything's ok."  
"Good." She could clearly hear the relief in his voice.  
A short moment later Honoka left the room, a little more colour in her face.  
"How about breakfast?" she grinned.  
"Sounds more like you!" he chuckled. "Thanks Sakura."  
"Yeah, thanks a lot."  
"Naa, no problem." She grinned and watched them leaving. Shizune stepped out of a room and saw them too.  
"They look really chummy together."  
"Yes." Sakura said smiling. "And that's really good, for both of them."  
Shizune nodded smiling too.  
"But don't tell anyone, ok?" The pink haired kunoichi said, and went back to her work.

They had just finished their breakfast at Ichiraku, as Kiba, Akamaru and Shino showed up.  
"Ohayo!" they greeted. "I hope we're not disturbing you." Shino stated.  
"No, we have just finished." Honoka replied.  
"Good. We're here because the Godaime wants to talk to you."  
"Us both?" Kakashi asked.  


"No, only Honoka-san." Kiba said. "She said something about mission."  
"Sorry." She said, as she stood up, and patted his shoulder. "See you later."

"You wanted to talk to us, Tsunade-sama?" She said, as they were standing in her office.  
"Normally only to you, but that can save us the time to explain things twice." The blonde said.  
"Ibiki, your turn."  
Named shinobi stepped out of the shadow behind her.  
"I got news from Yori." He said, and Honokas expression froze. He fished a piece of paper out of his pocket and started to read:  
"You have something that belongs to us. Send her, and in exchange you get back what belongs to you." He put the letter aside. "Years ago, they have stolen a secret scroll, that contains some very important information. These information are sealed, and they couldn't read them."  
He looked at her, waiting for any reactions. Since there came none Tsunade said:  
"We won't hand you over. We will send ANBU after you, leaving you two days ahead, but we need you to be there too."  
She slowly nodded, feeling cold sneaking up her spine, she just knew something was going to happen.

"That's why I send Shino and Kiba with you. They're excellent trackers, so we won't lose your trace." All three of them nodded.  
"I want you to start this evening, at eleven. Last instructions then. You're dismissed."  
Ibiki stood at the door, and as Honoka walked past him, he whispered:  
"If you get the chance to kill him, don't hesitate."  
"Hai."

"What's up?" he asked her, as she returned back home.  
"I got a mission."  
"That's what I expected." He grinned, but as he looked at her his expression changed.  
"Which mission?"  
"I have to go back." She said, sitting down on the sofa. "I have to play the bait."  
"For what?"  
"Kirigakure had stolen an important secret scroll. Years ago, but weren't able to read it. Now they know that I've survived, and want me in exchange against that scroll."  
"That's suicide!"  
"No. She'll send ANBU after us, leaving us two days ahead."  
"What if they'll kill you?"  
"First they'll try to get some information out of me. And Konohas ANBU are quick."  
"Anyways, I don't feel well with this thought."  
"Me too. But if it's the last test of my loyalty, then I'll proof it."  
"Please be careful."  
"I'll be. Promise. I want to see you again." She smiled, and then kissed him.

Two days later, Honoka and her team had already left, Sakura fetched the results from the lab, and was happy as she read them through. But as she reached the last line she nearly jumped. She rushed to Tsunades office.  
"Tsunade-shisho, do you know where Honoka-san is?"  
"Sure. On an A-ranked mission to Kirigakure, why?"  
Sakuras face lost all colour.  
"What…? What's up?" the blonde asked, and Sakura handed her the results.  
"I can't see where you have a prob… oh!" she rubbed her eyes and looked at it again.  
"If I had known that I wouldn't sent her. Send me Ibiki, quickly. He needs to send the ANBU earlier, they have to catch up."  
"Hai." Sakura curtly bowed and then rushed out of the office.

She rushed to Ibiki, telling him to go to Tsunade immediately, and then rushed to Kakashis'.  
She knocked on the door impatiently.  
"What the heck's…?" she heard him grumbling behind the door.  
"Kakashi-sensei! It's me! Please let me in!"  
"What's up that you come here that early?" he mumbled.  
"Not everyone is used to sleep that long. I've got Honokas blood-status."  
"Come in." he said, looking curious at her.

After he sat down on the couch she handed him the report, and he read it.  
"You expect me to understand you medical-bla-bla and the numbers?" he said after a while.  
"Look at the last line! You were ANBU as I found out, you should know enough about the human body to know what that means." She said, rolling her eyes.  
It took him a little, then his eye grew wide.  
"Does that mean…?" he asked unbelievingly.  
"Yes." She nodded. "If I only had the results earlier…"  
"That's not your fault. When is that ANBU-squad leaving?"  
"I don't know. Tsunade wanted me to send Ibiki to her…"  
"Thanks Sakura, for the second time. Sorry, but I have to leave." He said, rushing out of the door.  
She stared at the open door quite a while, then took her report and left too.

Kakashi nearly ran into Ibiki as he left Tsunades office.  
"Have you sent your squad already?" he asked him nearly out of breath.  
"No, but I'm going to do it."  
"Let me join."  
"You dropped that all…"  
"I know, but I have to join, plus you still owe me something."  
"If you screw up the mission…"  
"I never had! And I never will!"  
"Then get your stuff ready. Maybe the Sharingan will become useful."  
"Thanks man." He said, and sped off again.  
Only half an hour later a three-man-squad headed towards Kirigakure, Kakashi with them.


	23. Part II Chap 5

Yosh, here we go again, next chap up. A little sad that only so few read it until today... but nonetheless I hope you enjoy reading it. Please leave me some reviews!! :3

* * *

"When are we reaching Kirigakure?" Kiba asked after a while in the boat.  
"The next island. Only ten minutes, I think. Be careful, ok?" She said.  
"We're attention in person." Kiba grinned.  
"That's what I expect you to be." Shino stated.  
"Why that pissed, Shino? You're joining."  
"I'm not pissed." He stated. "I just know that this mission is A-ranked, and that means normally Jonin-status."  
"Where's your prob then? You're nearly Jonin."  
"Unlike you." He coolly stated.  
"Don't argue now, please." Honoka said.  
"I don't want you to get your ass in danger." Shino said.  
"As if I've done that earlier…" Kiba grumbled.  
"And as we fought that Akatsuki-guy? Was that a clone or what?"  
"Give it a rest." The Inuzuka mumbled.

As they landed in Kirigakure, the cold feeling in her spine was growing, and she stood like frozen.  
"What's up?" Kiba whispered.  
"I never wanted to set foot at this land again." She whispered back. "It feels like suffocating."  
"From now on we'll travel slower." Shino said, while looking around in the fog and sending out some bugs.  
"Let's walk towards the village hidden in the mist."  
"Are we really going there?" Kiba asked.  
"Be happy if you don't have to…" Honoka stated.

"_We're too slow." Kakashi mumbled, forcing the other ones to travel even faster.  
"Hey! Slow down! We're useless if we're exhausted." The one with the cat-mask said.  
"And if we run into a trap blindly…" the dog-masked stated.  
"There won't be any traps set up for us." Kakashi replied. "They're after her, not after us."  
"We already know that. But why that hurry?"  
"That's none of your business." He replied. _

They walked already two days, using old hide-outs for the nights. Honoka felt pure fear since she stood up, and Akamaru sensed it immediately. After a silent bark Kiba knew as well, like Shino, but both of them remained silent about that.  
"If I tell you to run, then do it. Don't start an argument with me and don't hesitate."  
"But…" Kiba started.  
"You are my only chance." She said calm, looking at them. "If they catch you, they'll kill you. The ANBU can only find me if you stay alive."  
"Are you sure about that?" Shino asked.'  
"Positive." She replied. "Run and hide."  
"Run and hide." They replied.  
After a while Shino stopped, and so did the rest.  
"Six man ahead of us, waiting. Looks like a trap."  


"Well then, I'll go on ahead alone. You stay out of range and reach."  
Both of them wanted to follow her, but they knew they couldn't. So Honoka went on alone.  
As she reached a clearing she found herself surrounded by five shinobi. Without any words they attacked her, and she started fighting. She was able to finish three of them, but the other two caught her in the end.  
"Welcome home, sweetie." She heard an icy voice.  
"I haven't expected you to be stupid enough to come here again."  
"I didn't want to come, but since you have something that belongs to Konoha…"  
"That stupid scroll… I never thought it would be that important. But it's from the fourth Hokage…"  
"What do we do with her, boss?" the bigger one of the two asked.  
The icy voice laughed.  
"Show our guest her room."  
And they dragged her away.

Kiba and Shino heard the fight and the talk afterwards.  
"Man, that voice sends chills down my spine." Kiba said and Akamaru barked in agreement.  
"We have to follow them. At least a little."  
"I know." Shino said. "I placed on of my bugs on her. Let's follow them."

_Two days later the ANBU reached the point where they fought days ago.  
"They fought here." The dog said and looked around.  
"But the trace doesn't seem to lead anywhere…" the cat stated.  
Kakashi summoned Pakkun."Can you smell anything familiar?"  
"Moment please." The dog said, and walked around, sniffing. "A dog."  
"Akamaru?"  
"Yes."  
"Then take the lead."  
"Hai." And the three men followed the dog. _

They were able to follow them until they reached a river. Shino's bugs told him, that she was on the other side in a big building, but the way up to that building was full of traps.  
"I guess now we have to wait." Shino stated.  
"I hate waiting. I think she needs our help. It's just a feeling, but…"  
"I share it." The Aburame stated, looking into the mist in front of them.

Two days later Akamaru smelled another dog, and recognised it. He went towards the nearing group, to guide them. After a while there was a little crinkly noise and the three men stood beside them.  
"Finally found you." The cat stated.  
"We followed them until here." Shino stated. "Many traps on the other side. We didn't want to risk her life whit haunting them further."  
"Good." The dog said. "Then let's go now."  
"What had happened?" Kakashi asked Kiba.  
"They sat up a trap. She told us to wait and went on alone. She fought five men, killed three but got caught. They brought her up there. Shino's bugs followed them, that's why we're here now."  
"Alright. Let's go." He sighed, hoping that they weren't too late already.

They recognised that it wasn't a river, it was a lake, with a quite big island in it. It took them four days to reach the little castle, and two days more to figure out where they brought her, and where they had the scroll. On their fourth day as they reached the castle they heard bloodcurdling screams, and no one had to ask from who they came. It was hard to hold Kakashi back from running up blindly.  
"It'll kill her if we make anything blindfolded." Shino said to calm him down.

"We have to go in." Kakashi said on the sixth day.  
"We know how important that is to you…" the cat started.  
"You know nothing." He replied coldly. "Not a bit."  
"He's right." Shino said after a while. Some bugs had returned.  
"Her state is bad, she won't be able to hang on any longer."  
"Alright then." Kiba grinned. "Let's get the party started."  
"You and your dog will wait here, making sure no one enters the castle, you will join him to retrieve the scroll, and you will follow me to fetch the woman."  
Everyone nodded, and they started the rescue.

It took them quite a while to find the room they had dragged her into. Shino and the dog-masked had no problems, since the scroll was lying on the desk of Yori's office, opened, and some scribbling around what he had already tried at it. They quickly took it and left, reuniting with Kiba and Akamaru.  
Kakashi felt like ice-claws grabbing his heart as he saw her. It was horrible. She looked like a bloody mess, too weak to sit upright. They roughly dragged her into the room, putting her on a chair and tying her to it. As Yori entered the room he fought hard with himself to suppress his killing-intend.  
"So, you're still not willing to tell me anything useful? Anything new?" Yori asked her.  
"I got news for you." She carked, and Kakashi held his breath. "You're an ugly motherfucker." She managed to say.


	24. Part II Chap 6

Finally the next chapter... I hope you still like it...  
Please leave me some reviews... and now, enjoy!

* * *

It took them quite a while to reach the castle, and Honokas hopes faded, as she recognised the lake. It would be hard for them to reach the island, and reaching the castle would be even more difficult. She had heard rumours about that island as she was little, and it had to be plastered with traps. As they finally reached it, and brought her into a little room, they tied her on a chair.

"Well, then let's chat a little." The icy voice said.  
"As if I would tell you anything, you bastard." She said sniffy. He laughed roughly and then bowed down close to her.  
"Listen sweetie, actually we're pretty nice to you, but that can change rapidly. So better be cooperative."  
"Forget it, asshole." She said and spat him into his face.  
"You filthy little whore." He hissed, and hit her in the face. "If you want us to take this way…"  
Her cheek burned like fire, but she said nothing.  
"Stubborn?" he grinned evilly. "Nobu, she's yours." He stepped back to give the big one of his subordinates enough space. He grinned stupidly and cracked his finger-ankles.  
"You're a dead man, Yori." She hissed. And he started to laugh again.  
"You're not in a position to make threats, and I won't be that harsh if I were you. Nobu doesn't know when he should stop."  
"I am already dead, why don't you spare me that whole crap and finish me right now?"  
"Your mother had the same hot temperament like you, but in the end she was so simple to finish off. And I just want to have a little fun with you, since I had no chance with her." and with that he left the room.  
"First let's have a little fun together ." The big idiot grinned, and started to punch her until she got sick.

As he was finished with her, he threw her in a dirty little room. It was dark and damp, and smelled horribly. She didn't know how long she lay there, before they yanked her out again, and the whole procedure started again. After a while Nobu got bored of only hitting her with his hands, so he used a whip. She could feel her clothes rip, her skin burst open and the warm blood dripping out of the wounds. She bit her tongue not to scream, but after the third row of hits she couldn't remain silent anymore. Yori heard her scream and grinned, maybe she was going to talk now. But Honoka was stubborn, she would never betray Konoha.

"Are you going to talk now?" He asked her on her second day.  
"With you? I'd rather die."  
"That's a wish I will definitely grant you, sweetie, but not yet. I still want to have a little fun."  
"I am not YOUR sweetie, swine." She said mockingly and Nobu hit her again.  
"So foul-mouthed…" he stated.  
"The only language you and your stupid gorillas understand." She said, and got smacked again.  
"Nobu had already shown you what he does with ones who are obstreperous."  
"The only thing one can do with an IQ lower than dog dirt." And now Nobu knocked her out.  
"You idiot! I still wanted to talk to her! Now I'll have to wait again."  
"Sorry boss." The big one murmured.  
"Now get her out of my sight."

Nobu dragged her into her cell again and threw her on the floor. Stupidly grinning he locked the door. It took quite a while until she slowly woke up again. She was in comatose state, not really 

awake and not really unconscious. The noises she heard seemed like miles away. After what seemed like hours she slowly realised again where she was, but with those memories pain flooded back, and she winced with every movement.  
'Kami, please end it.' She thought. 'Why did I went on that mission? Loyalty-proofing, or did they ask me because they want to get rid of me?' but before she could think anything else she threw up again. That was the living hell she ever feared; Kirigakure's prison.

It took only a few hours, and she heard the stamping steps of Nobu again. For her he was the reincarnation of pure pain. He slowly came closer, and as he opened the door Honoka wished nothing more but to die, simply fell over and die. But then a little voice inside her head whispered that she wasn't alone anymore, that there was something worth fighting for. She hoped that she somehow would survive that all, even though she knew if they started with the drugs she was done for. Alone none of them was deadly, but the cocktail together…  
"Here we go again." The troll grinned, and dragged her out again.

She didn't know how long she was there already, and didn't want to know it either. Same counts for Nobu's 'gentle' touches. Only the sound of his footsteps made her want to simply rip his feet out. But there was no chance, even if she wouldn't still be handcuffed she was too weak to even keep her head up. She couldn't even scream anymore, she was too hoarse, she couldn't even affront Yori. And they started the same procedure again, torturing and then trying to interrogate and then torturing again.

Six days she had to hang on in this procedure; kicks, punches, whippings. It was on the sixth day as her rescue-team found her. She was sitting on a chair, tied up to it would explain it better, and looked really horrible. The clothes were torn up due to the whippings, dirty and bloody, her face was swollen, the skin burst open in several areas, and her hair was a mess to. In some parts one could clearly see that they ripped out wisps.  
The ANBU and Kakashi remained motion-less and listened carefully.

"So, you're still not willing to tell me anything useful? Anything new?" Yori asked her.  
"I got news for you." She carked, and Kakashi held his breath. "You're an ugly motherfucker."  
She caught another hit in the face. Some wounds burst open again, and some tears mixed into the blood.  
"Don't mess with me, Sakae, your time is borrowed."  
"Like yours, asshole." She spat out some blood.  
"I'm fed up with waiting. Nori, fetch me the drugs." He ordered, and Honokas eyes grew wide with horror.  
"I see you know what's coming next. Are you still sure about your silence?"  
"Fuck you." She said, and Nobu hit her again. She moaned because of the pain.  
"Why don't you kill me? You had your fun, the last days were even more horrible than hell."  
"I am going to kill you, but simply… That would be too easy, you committed high treason against Kirigakure, don't forget about that."  
"You're such a motherfucker." She carked again.  
"I'll let you die the most horrible way, that's a promise. I only told you that I'll grant your wish to die, but not how."  
"You're dead, Yori."  


"Sorry if I have to correct you, YOU are dead."  
"Then let's meet in hell, sucker, and I'll pay you back."

Nori returned with some little ampoules and syringes.  
"Oy, let's start with this one." He said, cracking it open. "It feels like suffocating, someone told me."  
She tried to wreath herself away, but she forgot about Nobu. This time he didn't smack her, he grabbed her hair and shoulder to stop the moving.  
Only a short moment after he had placed the injection, she was gasping for air, and the three men were laughing.  
"Nice feeling, right?" Yori joked. "But it won't kill you. Now, would you please tell me something? How many guards, where they are, when they change?"  
"Kiss…my…ass…" she nearly coughed the words out.  
"Still stubborn, I see…" he mumbled, taking the second ampoule.

"I've heard this will burn like hell in your veins. I'll give you a little time to think about whether you change your mind or not. If I inject the last one you'll die in about ten minutes." He said, giving her the second injection. Since she was too weak already she only whimpered and winced. Nobu dragged her from the chair, throwing her in the corner.  
"Think about it, honey. Maybe I'll kill you faster then."  
"Never…" she whimpered.  
"Like you wish." He said, and turned to leave. "Nobu, I need you to do something."  
"And what's my task?" Nori asked.  
"You can do what you want." He grinned. "She's nothing more than a nearly dead filthy little whore. Do as you please, but leave her alive. I want to enjoy seeing her kicking the bucket."  
"Fine." Nori grinned, rubbing his hands.

As Yori and Nobu had left he slowly went towards her. Honoka wanted to rob away, but she couldn't move. She silent tears dropped down and she closed her eyes, waiting for him to humiliate her even more, but he didn't touch her. She heard someone silently landing in the room, and then she heard a familiar voice, one could clearly hear the concentrated hate.  
"Keep your filthy hands off her." and before Nori could scream he lay dying on the floor.  
He quickly went to her, kneeling down next to her.  
"It's ok now, I'll take you home." He lifted her carefully from the ground, carrying her the ANBU.  
"Keep her, I have to do something." He took a piece of paper out of his pocket, quickly wrote a short note and then hid and waited.  
She could hear his voice, and it calmed her down. The ANBU took her carefully and hid with her.

Nobu was the first one who entered the room and before he really recognised what had happened Kakashi simply broke his neck. Yori entered a few minutes later, and saw his two subordinates lying dead on the floor. Nori was lying in a puddle of his own blood and Nobu was just lying there. He wanted to turn around, but the door closed that moment, and all he could see were two eyes, one of them red.  
"Payday, asshole." Kakashi hissed, his voice full of hatred and straight hit him into the face.  
"You tortured her, you motherfucker." The next hit followed.  
"Hitting a woman, no matter if Kunoichi or not… there are better ways, more subtle ways to interrogate." Now he kicked him, so that he fell down.  
"That's a personal thing." Yori hissed back.  


"Shut up, bastard." Again he kicked him. "For me it's a personal thing too. How about you taste your own medicine?" he asked, grabbing one of the syringes, stabbing him with it. Just a second later Yori was gasping for air.  
"She's one of us, a trusted one." And hit him in the face again.  
"She's…born…here…"  
"That doesn't count. You found out yourself that she won't betray Konoha." And he grabbed the second syringe.  
"How does it feel, sucker?" and injected the second one. Yori winced. Kakashi grabbed the third syringe.  
"And that's for nearly killing her…" and injected the third. He sat down and waited until Yori stopped twitching. Then he took one of Yoris Kunai and pinned the note he wrote earlier with it on his chest.

As he reached the ANBU the one asked him:  
"What have you written?"  
"Never touch Leaf-nin again."  
"Nice one." He answered.  
"I'll carry her." he told him, and the ANBU carefully handed her over.  
"We have to hurry." He said, and after they reunited with the rest they sped off home.


	25. Part II Chap 7

Here I go again... next chap up. Well, in here you'll find the answer to what's going on with Honoka. I'd bet that some of you already guessed... :D

Like always: please enjoy and pretty please leave some reviews.

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He feared that she wouldn't make it; her state was slowly getting worse. As they reached the ocean she get fever, and nearly all wounds were infected.  
"Sakura would be really necessary now." He mumbled.  
"How's she doing?" Kiba asked him.  
"Not really well…" Kakashi looked concerned down on her. "Not really well…"  
As they finally reached mainland again they hurried back to the village hidden in the Leafs as fast as possible.  
At the gate they the guards looked shocked as they noticed in which state Honoka was. None asked any questions, and no one tried to stop or slow them down.

"Where's Sakura? Or Tsunade?" Kakashi asked at the reception. "Tsunade-sama is busy and Sakura is upstairs in her examination room, but you can't…"  
"Thanks, and I'm pretty sure I can." He stated and ran up the stairs. Ino just left Sakuras room, but as she saw the copy Nin she stepped back in.  
"Sakura, I think you should come out. It seems important."  
"What's up?" she said, and walked to the door. As she saw Kakashi and Honoka her eyes grew wide.  
"Kami! What had happened?" leading him to an empty OP-room.  
"They caught her, and tried to get information out of her."  
"And failed." She stated, as he lay Honoka down on the table.  
"Ino, fetch me some bandages and medicaments, you know what I need, Kakashi-sensei, can you give me a hand?"  
"If you tell me what to do."

"Help me to get rid of her shirt, or what's left of that. I have to clean the wounds."  
He curtly nodded, and helped as good as he can.  
"Please hold her in that position." She said, starting to clean the wounds on her back.  
"That was a whip, right?" she asked, and saw him nodding. "Bastards." She mumbled.  
"I let them pay for that." He said, trying not to look at the wounds. As she was finished with cleaning them Ino came back with the ordered supplies.  
"Here you are." She said, laying them down next to her. Sakura scanned Honokas front party, but couldn't find any fractures or damaged inner organs, but bruises, and loads of them.  
"Ino, help me bandaging." She ordered.

It took them over one hour to treat every wound, and afterwards Sakura put Honoka in a room under steady watch. The machines were beeping, helping her to breath and controlling her heartbeat.  
"Will she make it?" he asked his former student, as she left the room.  
"I think so. She survived the last time, and her state was even worse back then. But the rest… We'll have to wait and look."  
He sighed and nodded.  
"You should go home and rest, Kakashi-sensei." She said, looking up to him.  
"I think I can't."  
"Of course you can! I'll stay here and watch her. In your actual state you aren't a big help after all. Go home, shower, eat something and sleep. I'll send someone to fetch you immediately if something changes." She looked at him.  
"That was an order." He sighed again and then left without any furthermore argument.

The other ones had reported to Tsunade what had happened, and she went into the hospital to look after Honoka.  
"How's she doing?" she asked as she entered the room.  
"Stabile." Sakura answered, rubbing her temples. "I extracted nearly everything of the drugs, treated her wounds, gave her medics against the infection, but I'm not sure if the cells have any damage." She looked tired and sad.  
"It's too early to say anything about that. We just have to wait and watch, at least four weeks." The Godaime stated, and after an examination she said:  
"You really did a good job. The only thing she now needs is rest. How's Kakashi?"  
"Nervous and concerned. I sent him home to rest, but I think I'll look after him later too."  
"I often ask myself how a country can treat its people. I shouldn't have sent her, we all knew it was a trap."  
"What happened had happened." Sakura said, while standing up. "Honoka is tough, she'll make it."  
"Yes, she proofed that. And more loyal than some of the people who were born here."  
Tsunade left and went back to work again, while Sakura stayed to watch her.

As she left hours later, after she had instructed the medic who took the watch during her break, she went past Ichirakus and bought some ramen. Only a short while later she knocked at the door of her former senseis apartment door.  
It took a while until he opened.  
"You look horrible." She said.  
"Nice to see you too." He replied, and stepped aside to let her in.  
"I brought you something to eat." She said, handing him over the box.  
"That's nice Sakura, but I don't think that I can eat something right now."  
"Then you can warm it up later." She said, and sat down on the floor, watching him as he sat down on the sofa.

"She'll make it." She said, trying to encourage him a bit.  
"I really hope that." He said. "I never dreamed about finding someone like her, and now I nearly lost her."  
"But you haven't, you came right on time to save her."  
"I shouldn't have let her go."  
"She's a kunoichi."  
"I know."  
"Giving yourself the guilt for what had happened is wrong, and you know that."  
He remained silent.  
"I'd love to tell you something that can cheer you up." She said, looking sad.  
"What about the… Are you sure about the fact that…" he started.  
"I'm pretty sure." She answered. "The test is clearly positive. She's definitely pregnant, but I can't tell you if… we'll have to see. I'm not sure if the drugs caused any damage. That's something time will show us."

Now he looked even more miserable, and Sakura felt horrible.  
"I have the nightshift tonight, if you want, you can come with me." she said and looked at him.  
"I mean, it can't be disturbing if you're there." She stated.  
"Are you serious?" he asked her.  
"Why not?" she smiled at him. "Let's go."

"And it's really no problem?" he asked her again as they reached the hospital.  
"No." Sakura answered. "Plus I can watch you too, without any childish behaviour from your side." She grinned teasingly.  
"Plus you can help me. There are some other badly injured too, and if you watch her it's easier for me."  
"But what can I do?"  
"You can cool her face that the swellings go back sooner, for example." She said, while ordering a nurse to put some cooling packs into Honokas room.  
"If you want I can put a second bed into the room."  
"No, there's no need to. I don't think that I'll sleep."  
"I'll look after you all two hours. If you need something then call."

He sat down on a chair next to her bed, putting the cooling bag slowly and carefully on her cheek. In short intervals, as Sakura had ordered, so it won't get too cold. He gently stroked her hand, while he looked at her. It felt right to sit next to her, but so wrong to see her at that state. Somehow he wished that Yori would've died a more cruel way, because he was the source of that pain.  
"Get well soon." He whispered, while listening to the constant beeping of the machines.

A while later Sakura entered the room, and sat down at the other side of the bed after checking her state again.  
"Quiet?" he asked her after a while.  
"Now, yes." She sighed. "One had a panic-attack, but I was able to calm him down."  
"Good." He stated. "Has Naruto said anything because I wasn't there?"  
"He was a little pissed that you haven't taken him with you." She yawned. "He said that we should do more together, and mumbled something about family…"

"A family is a quite important thing." Kakashi mumbled.  
"Yeah." She said smiling a little. "And somehow we're like a big family."  
He looked at her with a raised brow.  
"Don't give me that look, Kakashi-sensei!" she laughed. "Naruto told me after the last mission where he met Sasuke-kun. We, means you, Iruka-sensei, 'Sasuke-bastard' and me, are his family. And somehow he's right. I mean, I still have my family, but the squad is sort of my second one."  
"You have always been the part that balanced out the cool tempered Uchiha and the hot tempered Uzumaki, and somehow my laziness too." He said, looking more relaxed now.  
"Iruka-sensei once said, the most beautiful thing in Konoha is, that no one is really alone, except he wants to be."  
"Sometimes being alone isn't that bad. You only have your life that you can lose, losing other ones who are precious to you is harder than anything else."  
"But doesn't one fight harder if one has someone to protect?" she said, looking at him questioningly. "You taught us that; stick together, trust each other, but you always acted against your own rules. But no one of us ever said something about that. That was and stays your business." She said.  
"After Sasuke left we felt that he was missing, the gap he left behind… the sadness we felt back then was a sadness we could see and sense around you quite often. Like in the land of waves as Zabuza died. You wanted us to introduce our selves the first time we met, and we did it, but you only said your name, and even if we are a squad for years now, you never revealed more."

"Maybe I just didn't want to bother anyone with that. It was hard enough to carry and is still hard enough to deal with. But that's why I taught you teamwork, that at least I could prevent _you_ from making the same mistakes."  
"Some things we were able to find out." She said, looking at Honokas face. "Not that you think we sniffed around… most of the things Jiraiya told Naruto. I just think that in a team there should be enough trust under its members… and after Chijo-baa-sama attacked you and called you 'white fang' I just did a little research."  
"And what have you found out?" he said in his usual bored tune.  
"That he was a strong and respected man; that you somehow are like him, and a few other things... That so called 'incident'… I would've done the same."  
"Is that so?"  
"Yes, definitely. His actions were one reason why Konoha changed, why we were that special, why we care for each other. Being Shinobi is one site, but we're human after all."  
"How much do you know?" he asked her, but instead of answering she stood up.

"I know little, but I feel much. Feeling guilty for things we couldn't have changed, because they happened as they had to, is sort of stupid. Being a human means suffering and feeling joy, sometimes at the same time. The biggest gift we have, and that really makes us human, is the ability to forgive. To forgive doesn't mean to forget, but it's the most important thing to be able to live on. I've learned that, and so did Naruto. It was the only way for us to cope with that what Sasuke did."  
"You haven't answered my question." He said.  
"See, that's another thing I've learned from you." She grinned. "But as I said, I know little. First because not everything is written down, second because we didn't know who to ask, third because we were afraid of you kicking our butts if you found out and fourth, because we maybe hope that you will tell us some day." She said and yawned again.  
"Oh, by the way, Naruto and I still shut up about you two, but if everything is going to be alright, you will have to think about something, you can't keep **_that_** a secret forever."  
"I know." He mumbled.  
"What's the matter?" she grinned teasingly. "We knew pretty well that our famous and feared former sensei, the copy nin Kakashi Hatake is human after all, with normal and pretty funny weaknesses, just think about the bell-test, and how you act if you have to take some medicines."  
He didn't know what to answer, and just looked at her.  
"But honestly, you're the best sensei we could've get." She grinned and left the room.


	26. Part II Chap 8

Sorry that it took me longer to post, but I'm writing at my Saku/Sasu story and I was a little distracted. I hope that you'll like it. Slowly it comes to an end, there's only one chapter left...

So - pretty pretty please - leave me some reviews!!

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He thought about what Sakura had just said, and felt that she was right. He never told them anything about himself, but even though they stick to him, and haven't told anyone anything. Naruto was right, they were sort of a family, and only thinking about that made him smile. Sasuke still wasn't back home, but he was seen quite frequently around the village. Naruto is bugging him whenever he caught sight of him, it was only a question of time until he enters the village permanently again.

Since Honoka was there he felt how much he had changed himself. Sakura told him a few months ago that he's kind of spooky to her, because he was right on time. And not only that. If he was on missions earlier he sometimes didn't want to go home. His apartment was empty and the ghosts of his past were hunting him, but now he was looking forward to coming home, because there was live again. Honoka was waiting, sometimes laying on the sofa fast asleep, and smiled at him when she noticed he was at home. He loved the little quarrels about who's first in the bathroom in the morning, who's the one to make breakfast and her habit of wearing his shirts. He could laugh his ass off when she tells him that they suit her more like hers him. A smile rushed over his face as he thought about the way she rolled her eyes when she stuck out her tongue and mocked him.

And then he looked down on her, and in her hurt face. Sakura had healed the cuts and bursts, but it was still swollen, and was shining blue, green and yellow. He took another cooling pack, and carefully lay it on her other cheek.

The next two days she had loads of visitors; nearly everyone was coming around, first only the girls, then Kiba and Shino, then slowly the rest. Thanks to Sakura and the cooling her face now looked normal again.  
"Granny Tsunade." Naruto grinned. "What are you doing here?"  
"Looking after my patients." She stated. "That's what a medic is supposed to do."  
"Hmpf." He made.  
She examined Honoka again, and smiled.  
"It won't take long now until she'll wake up. You really did a great job Sakura." She smiled at her.  
"I did my best." She replied.  
"Yeah Sakura-chan, you really rock." Naruto grinned.  
"Slimer." she mumbled teasingly.  
"No, I'm not." Naruto stated pouting.  
Kakashi grinned under his mask, even though those two were older now, they still act like kids sometimes. He would bet that they did it the last days just to make him smile.

Some when late at night he fell asleep, his head resting on her hand. Honoka woke up due to a constant beeping sound next to her ear. It took her a while to recognise where she was, and she blinked several times before she could really see anything. As she turned her head a little she saw a silver mess of hair and smiled inwardly. He was fast asleep, and she didn't want to wake him up. After a few minutes she drifted back to sleep as well. The next morning after he woke up he stood up and opened the window, letting in some fresh air. Summer was slowly reaching his middle, and he liked the scent of the air in the morning. He went back to his chair, taking her hand again and gently stroked it. He was lost in his thoughts as a little pressure against his fingers dragged him back to reality.  
"Good morning sunshine." She whispered, a faint smile on her lips.  
"You're awake!" he grinned widely, resisting the big urge to hug her.  
"Yeah." She whispered again. "I was awake last night too, but you were fast asleep and I didn't want to wake you."  
"You should've." He stated, raising a brow. She smiled, but it took her quite a while until she spoke again.  
"Don't be mad, please. How are… the others?" he could clearly hear that it was exhausting for her to speak.  
"Everyone is fine. The scroll is back and so are you."  
"Thanks for… helping me…"  
"Nothing to thank for, I had to join them."  
"It… soothed me… to feel… your presence."  
"I think you shouldn't speak that much. I'll go and fetch Sakura." He said and stood up.

"She's awake." He said, as he looked into Sakura's office.  
"Good! I'll come." She said, standing up and grabbing her clipboard.  
"Honoka-san!" she smiled as she entered the room.  
"Yo, Sakura-san…" Honoka replied.  
"So you're finally back." The pink haired grinned. "How are you feeling?"  
"It… would be… better… without… those… cables here."  
"Sorry, but as long as you're not really fit, I won't put them away. But I think you can stand two more days."  
"I… just… have to… right?"  
"I see you finally got me." She laughed. "I'll need a new blood status now." She mumbled, walking over to a cupboard, fetching a syringe.  
"Is that… really… necessary?"  
"I'm afraid it is. I have to look if you already got rid of the drugs."  
Honoka sighed and closed her eyes, she couldn't watch her taking it.  
"Funny… huh? I'm a… kunoichi… and can't… stand that."  
"Naa, that's something different." Sakura winked. "But now you should sleep. Don't overdo it."  
"Hai." Honoka replied, closing her eyes again. "But you… should rest… too, Kakashi." She whispered to him.  
"Yeah." He stated, focusing the second bed in the room and decided that a little nap can't be too bad.

Honoka recovered fast, and two days after she woke up she was allowed to stand up again. And with Kakashis help she walked out in the hospital park.  
"It seems I'm sitting here every summer." She pulled a face and he laughed.  
"So it seems. I think I'll lock you up somewhere next summer."  
"Naa, that's too drastic." She laughed. "Had Sakura told you anything about the results?"  
"No." he said quickly. "Not yet." He hoped that she would give it a rest, he didn't want to lie to her.  
"Oh." She answered. "I hope she gets them soon. I want to leave."  
"I think you can check out soon." He winked. "Since you can joke around and pull faces again, you can't be that ill anymore."  
"Yeah yeah." She mumbled. "Mock me, go on."  
"Naa, I won't! Never ever." He grinned.  
"See! Here you go again!"  
"Going is a good word. I think we should go back in, it's time for your lunch, I guess."  
"Ew." She made, pulling a face again. "This hospital food is…"  
"No need to explain." He grinned and stood up.  
"Come on. If you want to leave, then do something for it."  
"Kakashi, you are a monster." She said, sticking out her tongue.  
"Oy! You'll get that back." He joked. "Wait until you're home."  
"I'm really looking forward to it." She said grinning.

As they entered the room, Sakura was standing at the window, waiting for them.  
"You're back! Good." She smiled. "Kakashi-sensei, Genma-san wants to talk to you, he's waiting in front of the main entrance. He hadn't told me what he wanted."  
"Huh? Strange. I'll be back in a while." He said, and left the room.  
"Well, Honoka, I have your results back." Sakura said, pulling a chair next to her bed.  
"And? Something I should be worried about?"  
"I don't know if you'll be worried about that. First of all, you're healthy, no drugs left. You have no virus, no infection."  
"Fine!" Honoka smiled. "Then it was only my stomach that made trouble."  
"Yes." Sakura answered. "But that had a reason."  
"And witch?" she looked at her curious. "I mean, I haven't eaten anything strange or something."  
"I know." Sakura said again. "I had a feeling, as you told me about your symptoms, that's why I asked you when you had your last menstrual period. Back then you told me it was two weeks ago, means you should've had it last week again, but you haven't. Right?"

"I think so. I'm just awake a few days."  
"Yeah. Sometimes if patients lay that long, the cycle is upside down, but that changes as soon as the person starts to move and walk again. But even that doesn't change anything. And on your results you can see why." She handed her the clipboard and Honoka read it through. As she reached the end line she looked shocked, and nearly collapsed.  
"That means, I'm… I'm… oh my god! What have I done?"  
Sakura looked at her, surprised about her reaction.  
"You know already right? You know since the last blood status. That's why Kakashi joined, right?"  
She only nodded as reply.  
"You wanted to check if I haven't lost it. And, can you tell me what's…?"  
"Actually you still are, but I can't tell you if the drugs have caused any damage. Tsunade-shisho said that it'll take four till six weeks, until we can tell you."  
"So long?" Honoka stated, her face pale with shock.  
"Yes, I'm sorry."  
"Don't say you're sorry, you haven't done anything wrong." She said. "But you're sure you can tell me then?"  
"Not me, but Tsunade-shisho."  
"Ok. Then… I think I… just have to wait."  
"He just wanted to ask me how you feel…" Kakashi said as he re-entered the room, but as he saw Honokas pale face and Sakuras expression he shut his mouth.  
"So you told her." he said and sat down again.

"You knew all the time?" she asked him as Sakura had left.  
"Yeah. Sorry, but Tsunade meant it would be too stressing for you if we tell you…"  
"You know that it can be… hurt?"  
"Yes." He sighed. "But I still hope it isn't."  
"So it's not a problem for you?" she asked him silently.  
"A problem? Are you crazy?" he said, looking shocked. "No! It's definitely not a problem!"  
"I never thought about kids…" she stated, looking at her hands. "I never thought I'll become old enough and find someone to…" she broke off, and looked out of the window.  
"I know how you feel." He mumbled, looking out too. "But now… honestly… I can't think about anything better."  
"Are you serious?" she asked him, and looked at him.  
"Sure I am." He answered, and smiled at her.

Another two days later she was allowed to check out, and happily left the hospital.  
"Now I need something to eat!" she laughed. "Real food, not that crap…"  
"How about a little visit at Teuchi's?" he asked her winking.  
"Sounds really good!"  
And this time she ate two bowls, and after that she looked really happy.  
"There's nothing better than ramen." She laughed and he only chuckled.  
At home she took a bath, to get rid of the hospital-smell.  
"Oy, you've cleaned!" she stated, as she looked around in the apartment.  
"Sure. I don't want you to collapse."  
"That's really nice." She chuckled, and sat down on the sofa, hugging a pillow.  
"How I missed that." She stated. "I haven't thought that I'll sit here again."  
"If you only missed that old sofa…" he grinned, and sat down next to her. She hugged him tightly.  
"I have nothing missed more than you." And kissed him on the cheek.  
"That's something you should already know."


	27. Part II Chap 9

Five weeks later she had to show up at the hospital again for a check up. Tsunade herself examined her.  
"Good news for you!" the Godaime smiled. "Everything in best order and health."  
Honoka sighed with relief.  
"But you know what that means?" Tsunade said. "No big missions for you now. You can supervise Genin-teams at their missions, but nothing more."  
"Naa, I'd rather help Iruka at the academy." She replied.  
"Sounds like a good idea. I'll tell him later." She said smiling. "I want you to come around for a check up all two weeks, ok? Just to be sure."  
"Hai." She nodded.  
"By the way, I think you should look for a bigger apartment, or a little house. Yours will be too small in a few months."  
"Hmm." She mumbled. "I'll tell him."  
"I think he already knows. I have given him some addresses where you can find a new home." She winked and Honoka laughed.  
"Well then, thanks."

They found a nice little house in the outskirts of the town, and after two weeks of rummaging and packing and unpacking they now lived there.  
"Actually I think it's too big." Honoka said one morning.  
"Hmm, we'll get used to it." He replied. "And I like it here."  
"So do I." She stated.  
"What are you doing at the academy today?"  
"Nothing big. Practising a few ninjutsu with the students."  
"Don't overdo it."  
"I only instruct them, and don't fight them." She laughed. "But thanks for your concern, Hatake-san." She winked.  
"You know that I'm always concerned about you, Hatake-san." He teased back grinning.

As the weeks passed by she became thicker and thicker. One morning she was grumbling as she was looking for some clothes that still fit her.  
"What's up?" he asked her from downstairs, as he heard her swearing.  
"I go insane!" she called back. "Normally I'm used to be a really skinny person, and now I'm feeling like a balloon! Is that going to become a kid or a giant?"  
He chuckled and walked upstairs.  
"I think you still look good." And gently stroked the growing belly. "By the way, you only will look like a balloon for three months now."  
"Three months." She sighed. "Man, that's still a long time. Do you know what's the most frustration about that whole situation?"  
"Please don't tell me the clothes?!" he chuckled.  
"No!" she said chuckling. "I haven't seen my toes for quite a while!"  
He laughed. "You have problems!"  
"Yeah, I have! The students at the academy are getting cheekier every day! And why? Because I'm getting too slow to catch them."

Only two weeks to go, and Honoka sat at home on the sofa, trying to read, but couldn't. At the last check Tsunade told her that she was going to get twins.  
_"Not a giant, normal kids."  
"Kids?"  
"Yeah, Twins. One was always hiding behind the other one."  
"Oh my god." Honoka sighed and Tsunade laughed.  
"You were able to handle S-ranked missions, same counts for Kakashi, I think you'll be able to deal with two kids."  
_At the moment it seemed as if they were training taijutsu already.  
"Ouch!" she said, and Kakashi, who just came home asked:  
"What happened?"  
"I think they already start training. That's the fifth kick I caught in the last two hours."  
"Really?"  
"Come over here and feel it yourself." She said, and lay his hand on her belly as he sat down next to her, and really, a while later he could feel a kick.  
"Oy." He stated smiling. "Kicking your mommy isn't quite nice." He laughed and then kissed her.

He was sparring with Naruto as Ino ran towards them.  
"Better hurry." She said breathlessly. "It had started."  
"Sorry Naruto, training is over for today." And he sped off to the hospital.  
"What's up?" Ino asked him. "Want to stay here or what? Come on, move!" and she turned round and ran back, Naruto close behind her.

"Push!" they heard Tsunade telling her through the door.  
"What do you think what I'm doing?" Honoka moaned.  
A short time later:  
"Oy! The first one's here!" and two minutes later the "Second one" arrived.  
Honoka was lying groggy in her bed, having a bright grinning Kakashi at her side with two little babies.

"They look so cute." Sakura smiled, as she looked at them. A boy, the first born, and a girl. Both of them with silver hair and lavender eyes. They earned loads of 'ah' s and 'oh' s and 'how cute' s and 'they look so like you' s.  
The first night they slept through both of them woke up at the usual cry-feed-rock-time. And went into their room, to look if everything was alright. Smiling they looked down on them, and slowly and silently went back into bed.

Four years later:

They were both fast asleep, Honoka snuggled up against him and his arm around her like usual. Slowly the door opened, two barefooted pairs of feet sneaked up to the bed. The owner of these feet ginning at each other, voiceless counting from three down to zero and then jumping on the bed.  
"GOOD MORNING!" they shouted, and started laughing as their parents nearly jumped out of the bed.  
"You…!" Kakashi said, shooting an angry look at them. "How often do we have to tell you not to wake us up like that?"  
"Come on Daddy." His daughter looked at him with puppy eyes.  
"You know witch day is today!" their son grinned widely.  


"Yeah, sure we know." Honoka grinned too. "Our mission-free day."  
"Mom!" he protested. "Today's our first day at the academy!"  
"Really?" Kakashi smirked. "I think we have forgotten…"  
"NANI?" the kids shouted, and their parents started to laugh.  
"As if we can forget something like that!" they protested.  
"Now get yourself ready! Or want you to go like that? Pyjamas wouldn't be so cool, though." Kakashi grinned, and the kids sped off. A short moment later they could hear the bathroom door close.  
"This evening I'll lock the door." Honoka mumbled, while getting up and stretching herself.  
"Sounds like a good idea." He winked at her, and she jumped laughing back on the bed.  
"You and your thoughts."  
"And you understand them pretty well."

One and a half hour later they were standing at the yard in front of the academy, watching the kids. As the names for Iruka's class were called, they heard two familiar ones: "Hatake Kichiro and Hatake Kimiko." The twins were grinning widely at Iruka, and last one winked at Kakashi and Honoka, who were looking proudly at their kids.  
"It seems like everything's ok now." He stated after a while.  
"Yeah." She nodded smiling. "I bet with you Iruka complains about Kichiro in latest two weeks; that he's too much Kakashi-like." She said, while grinning teasingly.  
"Not only about him, I guess." He chuckled. "Kimiko is nearly the same. But if you want to bet, I think it'll take him one week, not longer."  
"I hold against." She grinned, and they watched the kids following their new teacher into the academy.  
"Somehow it's hard to let them go." She stated.  
"They'll come back soon enough." He said. "I'm only curious which way they choose."  
"Their own, I hope. They'll never surpass us if they step in our footsteps." Honoka sighed.  
"But until they surpass us, there's still much time." He stated, laying an arm around her shoulder.  
"And I think we should use this time…" he whispered into her ear.  
"Sometimes you're so right." She chuckled, and lay an arm around him too, as they turned round and left.

* * *

End.

Sad. For me I mean. I really loved this story myself.

That's why I let them appear in other stories of mine as well. They show up in my Sasu/Saku story too, so if you like, then check it out.  
Thanks to all those who followed the story from the beginning, I never thought or dared to dream that Honoka would be liked that much. :3

Thanks for your nice and encouraging reviews, I really loved reading them. Well, now I won't bother you with more of my babbling... I just hope you enjoyed reading and maybe decide to look at other stories of mine too.

(hugs all the readers and leaves)


	28. Chapter 28

First of all I have to say 'thank you' to all the readers who had been – and still are – following my stories. It's always nice to see that people are still following my work, though I'm really lazy at the moment. Things will get better, I promise.

"New start" is one of my personal favorites, which was the reason for me to rewrite the story. I haven't changed much of the plot, only some details around Honoka and a lot of the dialogues between her and Kakashi. I figured it was much too childish for them – no one says that adults always have to act grown up – but I wasn't overly satisfied with the story. In my head it all appeared much better, so I bugged y-in-flame – god knows how I thank you for aiding me – and we worked on the story again. Slowly the old chapters will be replaced and if my wonderful beta stays with me, the sequel will be redone as well.

Again thanks to all of you who read my stories; it's nice to see that I'm able to entertain you.


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